Surrey rattled as Essex grasp keep an eye on on again of Alastair Cook dinner’s 165

Preventing fifty from Hashim Amla prevents entire cave in as Essex assault stocks seven wickets

Surrey 107 for 7 (Amla 58*) path Essex 439 (Cook dinner 165) by way of 332 runs

Certainly, Essex themselves misplaced their closing seven wickets for the addition of most effective 140 runs in 3 hours of laborious graft, with Cook dinner 5th out for a powerful 165 – his best firstclass ranking on the Oval.

However Surrey’s answer then started disastrously with each openers, Cameron Metal and Ryan Patel, out for geese and Ollie Pope temporarily following for five as they slid to 19 for three. And it didn’t get significantly better as 4 extra wickets had been misplaced earlier than the shut.

Will Jacks battled nearly an hour for his 11, till he was once leg-before to a Shane Snater offcutter, and Rikki Clarke made it to twelve – together with a large six over the fast boundary on one facet of the bottom off Simon Harmer – earlier than the offspinner had his revenge by way of having Clarke stumped.

Making an attempt to pressure off the again foot, Jordan Clark then edged the bustling Sam Cook dinner at the back of, to move for five, and Jonny Tattersall was once the sufferer of a exceptional left-handed diving catch by way of Nick Browne at quick leg off Harmer.

Jamie Porter had began Surrey’s slide, having Metal well-held in the beginning slip from the 6th ball of the innings, and Sam Cook dinner then struck along with his 2nd ball – bowling from across the wicket – as left-hander Patel was once pinned lbw by way of one angled in to his pads.

Porter, in his 5th over with the brand new ball, then produced a attractiveness which Pope touched to Adam Wheater at the back of the stumps, however former South Africa nice Amla was once studious in defence as he sought to carry again the Essex tide.

Amla additionally two times in an over swept Harmer for 4, but if the bowler switched to the Vauxhall Finish he was once nearly right away a success as Clarke skipped down the pitch and was once overwhelmed by way of a ball which spun throughout the gate because the allrounder aimed a violent swipe.

The day started with Porter, Essex’s nightwatchman, attaining a jaunty 30 in a 54-run stand with Alastair Cook dinner earlier than he edged Clarke at the back of. Cook dinner, having batted for seven and a part hours, was once after all undone by way of a tremendous piece of bowling from sluggish left-armer Dan Moriarty, who went across the wicket to have England’s file Check run-getter stuck by way of keeper Tattersall as he attempted to chop. He had confronted 330 balls, hitting 20 fours.

Wheater performed some excellent strokes in his 39, earlier than being 8th out providing no stroke to Reece Topley and seeing his off bail trimmed, however Paul Walter’s 33 was once a extra tortured affair that was once ended by way of a super reflex catch by way of Pope at gully, simply off the turf, after the left-hander had edged Jacks’ offspin directly to Tattersall’s arm.

The remainder of Essex’s decrease order succumbed meekly, Harmer leg-before to Topley for three, Aron Nijjar stuck at the back of off James Taylor for two and Sam Cook dinner leg-before to Taylor for nought.