Usman Afzaal has not tasted victory in a County Championship match since joining Surrey at the beginning of 2008, but his career best knock of 204 not out looks set to change all that. Needing 321 to force the Brown Caps to bat again, Northamptonshire have slumped to 189-7 in their second innings. Had it not been for Stephen Peters's second half-century of the match, this contest would almost certainly be done and dusted by now.

After spending 164 overs in the field, the Northants openers made a reasonable start, with Peters cutting Jade Dernbach high over the slips for four and driving the 23-year-old to the long-off boundary later in the same over. But in the next, the seventh, Robert White was caught behind off one that Andre Nel got to shape away; though not before the South African had struck White on the back of the helmet. Mark Nelson then shouldered arms to Dernbach to make it 33-2.

Nicky Boje played some attractive straight drives off Dernbach and flicked Nel to the mid-wicket fence, but, on 15, steered Chris Schofield's third delivery of the match into the waiting hands of Michael Brown at short leg. When David Willey offered no stroke to Schofield two overs later it looked as though Northants would merely offer token resistance.

But with Andrew Hall's help, Peters saw his side through to tea, which was taken after the former Essex and Worcestershire opener had brought up his fifty in 104 deliveries, with an edged four off Murtaza Hussain.

Hall cut Nel to the point boundary immediately after the interval and later flicked him to fine leg for four. Having offered a difficult chance, on 36, to gully off Nel in the 43rd over, Hall perished three overs later when he edged Murtaza to Jonathan Batty, who parried the ball up in the air to Newman at leg slip.

David Murphy despatched Dernbach to the cover boundary and, next ball, cut him over third slip for four, but four overs later Dernbach had the last laugh when he sent Murphy's off stump cartwheeling.

Just when it looked at if the hosts would not incur any further losses before the close, Peters's vigil came to an end when he edged a googly from Schofield, which lifted sharply, to Mark Butcher at slip. Peters had batted for nearly four hours for his 78 off 171 balls, which contained eleven boundaries.

Earlier, Surrey, resuming 219 ahead, added a further 102 runs for the loss of three wickets to record their highest total for well over a year. Murtaza cut the first ball of the day, bowled by Boje, for four and was fortunate to survive a chance at slip, when on 23, off the same bowler. But after driving both Boje and Hall through point for four, the 34-year-old was caught behind at the second attempt off bat and pad.

Four overs later, Nel was bowled all ends up by David Wigley, to leave Afzaal needing a further thirty runs for his maiden double century. With a six over mid-wicket off David Lucas and a pulled four off Wigley, the former England left-hander soon found himself within reach of his target. Afzaal brought up his 200 with a single to backward point off Boje in the 159th over. It had taken him 419 balls. It had also included 27 fours and two sixes.

When Dernbach, who, at one point, played a superb straight drive over the bowler, Wigley's head for four, was caught at second slip off the last ball before lunch, Surrey's tenth wicket pair had put on 59 in thirteen overs to pile even more misery on Northamptonshire.

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