Ramprakash rues century near-miss

Mark Ramprakash is closing in on the milestone of 1,000 first-class runs in a season for the 20th time in his career but the veteran Surrey batsman cut a frustrated figure against Derbyshire at Chesterfield yesterday.

Thanks to a malfunctioning scoreboard, showing him on 98, spectators at Queen's Park rose to applaud what they assumed to be the 112th first-class hundred of his career when he drove Tim Groenewald through the covers for four. In fact, he had been on 95, which explained his annoyance when the next ball bowled him off an inside edge for his fourth dismissal on 99.

With Uzman Afzaal making 73, Surrey had four batting points for their day's work, boosting their prospects of climbing off the foot of the Second Division.

In the First Division, Durham's freakish collection of injuries continued when the South African all-rounder Albie Morkel suffered a groin strain. The champions were put in by their bottom-of-the-table visitors Warwickshire, who owed much to Ian Blackwell's 86 for a recovery to 288 all out after being 19 for 2 and then 112 for 5. Blackwell and Phil Mustard put on 91 for the sixth wicket.

At New Road, Worcestershire recovered from 77 for 6 to 175 all out thanks to a 71-run partnership between Gareth Andrew and Ben Cox, but Leicestershire trail by only 12 runs after half-centuries from Will Jefferson and Jacques du Toit.

The Zimbabwean seamer Anthony Ireland took 5 for 25 in 11 overs as Gloucestershire dismissed Middlesex for 236 at Bristol.