Vithushan Ehantharajah at Middlesex 233 & 11-0 v Lancashire 165 all out
Quality from Middlesex, who have that lead, of 68. No TRJ, no problem. Harris, Murtagh and Rayner polished off the Lancashire tail. The last five wickets fell for 52 – most of those scored by Ryan McLaren, who has just handed his cap to the standing umpire to open the bowling from the Nursery End. He took 38 balls to get off the mark before playing superbly on this pitch to find 27 runs. Nick Compton has got off his bear with a glorious shot through midwicket. Looking rosy for the defending champions...