Fifties from Murray Goodwin, Michael Yardy and Luke Wright put Sussex in command on day two of Surrey's visit to Hove. After needing just 19 deliveries to polish off the visitors' three remaining wickets, the Martlets established a lead of 73 thanks mainly to Yardy and Goodwin's 117-run alliance for the third wicket, which made amends for the early losses of Chris Nash and Joe Gatting. Having said that, Jade Dernbach's late burst with the second new ball means that Surrey could still be in with a shout if they make short work of the hosts' tail this morning.

Nash departed in the third over of the home side's reply to Surrey's 205, when Andre Nel got the ball to nip back as well as keep low. However, Nash appeared to be far from happy with the decision. At lunch Nel's figures were 9-6-9-1, but after the break it was a different story once Yardy had pulled and picked the South African up over the in field on the leg-side for boundaries.

Gatting was out to a spliced pull, which looped high to mid-off, to make it 26-2 in the twentieth over. The Surrey attack stuck to their task, but begun to lose their grip on the scoring when Goodwin cut Nel and Dernbach and used his feet to Gareth Batty. The Zimbabwean's half century came off just 70 deliveries. The diminutive right-hander swept Batty for four, but when the former Worcestershire man switched ends in the 54th over he defeated Goodwin, who had designs on working the off-spinner to leg.

Yardy, who was on 29 when he was dropped at second slip, went to a more deliberate fifty, which came off 157 balls, with a reverse swept four off Batty. Wright injected some impetus back into the innings by pulling Iftikhar Anjum for four shortly before tea.

After the break Yardy was LBW, attempting to sweep a full-pitched delivery from Chris Schofield. But Wright's entertaining 63 from 68 deliveries, which included nine fours and a slog swept six off Batty, helped the home side regain the upper ground.

Wright became Iftikhar's second victim when he miscued a pull to mid-on in the 78th over, which exposed Michael Thornely and Andrew Hodd to the second new ball. Thornely despatched Iftikhar through cover for four, but then Hodd, in two minds, lost his leg stump to Dernbach's slower ball. Two overs later, Dernbach struck again, sending Thornely's off peg cartwheeling to keep Surrey in the hunt, just.

Earlier, Rana Naved made a sensational start by accounting for Nel and Iftikhar with the first two balls of the day. Nel was bowled off his pads by a leg stump yorker and Iftikhar's tired-looking forward defensive found him plumb in front. Schofield was the last Surrey man to go, padding up to one that held its line, to give Robin Martin-Jenkins 5-45 - his best figures at Hove for nearly three years.

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