With all 22 players spending time at the crease, the bowlers could do little wrong at Lord's on a day three pitch that heaped inconsistent bounce on top of lateral movement. When bad light brought an end to proceedings, ten and a bit overs short of the scheduled close, Surrey were 46 runs away from a sixth successive championship victory with six second innings wickets still intact.

Leading the South Londoners' charge was their skipper Rory Hamilton-Brown, who followed up Jon Lewis's 5-41 with an unbeaten 51 off 55 balls, which included six firmly struck fours. Earlier in the day, Hamilton-Brown, resuming his first innings on eight, made a diligent 35 in 77 deliveries, but only enjoyed meaningful support in the shape of Lewis as Surrey slumped from 184-5 to 222 all out.

In the ninth over of the day, Hamilton-Brown clipped Corey Collymore over mid-wicket for six before edging the West Indian to the third man boundary. But then Tim Murtagh struck by coaxing Chris Jordan into playing on. Collymore got in on the act by having Gareth Batty caught off a leading edge which ballooned to point.

Hamilton-Brown was next to go, leg before to Toby Roland-Jones for 35. Lewis, who made 21, drilled Neil Dexter to mid-off. With Jade Dernbach offering no resistance, Middlesex claimed a first innings lead of 34. However, the North Londoners failed to use it to their advantage.

The new ball was entrusted to Lewis and de Bruyn, who struck either side of lunch by having Joe Denly caught in the slips, driving expansively, and Chris Rogers edging low to the left of Steven Davies to make it 29-2.

Dawid Malan then joined Sam Robson at the crease and together they added 36 for the third wicket before Dernbach clipped the top of Malan's off peg. Two overs later, Robson played around a straight delivery and Neil Dexter became the first of five scalps for Lewis, in the next, when he was pinned in front by a ball that skidded on.

Gareth Berg failed to get on top a delivery that lifted off a length. John Simpson was run out when a caught and bowled chance cannoned into the stumps at the non-striker's end. Ollie Rayner, pushing forward to Lewis, was snaffled in front of first slip by Davies. Roland-Jones fell to a superb catch by Jacques Rudolph at second slip and Collymore was the last man to go for Middlesex, lbw to Lewis, to leave the visitors needing a modest 141 for victory.

But the wickets continued to tumble. In the sixth over, Rudolph was trapped leg before by Roland-Jones. Davies fell in the next when he slapped a long hop from Murtagh straight to backward point and 14-2 became 22-3 when Mark Ramprakash was caught low down at first slip. With Zander de Bruyn joining forces with his captain, 46 runs were added in nine overs for the fourth wicket before de Bruyn went for one cut too many.

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