County Championship: Surrey move ahead despite Warwickshire fightback

Ben Foakes batted well for 39 before aloose shot cost him his wicket

Surrey took quiet control against Warwickshire on a gripping second day of their County Championship match at Edgbaston.

After bowling out the home side for 150, with Dan Worrall taking 4-38 and Kemar Roach 3-33 - the champions closed on 211-8 in reply.

Jamie Smith's compact unbeaten 57 off 114 balls has lifted his side into a position of strength on a pitch still offering some help to the seamers.

At 99-4, Surrey had plenty of work to dobut they did it diligently as Smith added 44 with Ben Foakes, 32 with Cameron Steel and 35 with Jordan Clark - small partnerships but, in the context of the match, of high value.

Perfect seam-bowling conditions on the first day gave way to blue sky and a flattening pitch on the second. Surrey have had much the better of the conditions and, like all good sides, taken advantage.

It has been engrossing cricket of high quality and intensity and a superb advertisement for the County Championship. Between them these teams have won the title 28 times and it could well be 29 come September.

After an hour's delay for the grass to dry on the second morning, Warwickshire resumed on 143-8 and added just seven in five overs as both remaining wickets fell to Worrall.

Dan Mousley fell for his overnight 55, scooping to deep mid-wicket and although Olly Hannon-Dalby raised the 150 with an elegant leg-glance, the next ball trapped Chris Rushworth lbw.

With diminishing cloud cover, batting conditions eased when Surrey replied, though they were still not easy against a demanding attack. Rushworth brought Dom Sibley's return to Edgbaston to an early end with the assistance of Rob Yates at slip and Hasan Ali's second ball trapped Ollie Pope lbw.

Rory Burns batted resolutely for 106 minutes for 32 but then left a Rushworth inswinger which would have knocked out middle and when Ryan Patel edged Hannon-Dalby to second slip it was 99-4 and the match was finely balanced, but Smith batted beautifully for a 95-ball half-century which wrested the initiative his team's way.

Warwickshire's seamers persevered admirably, Ed Barnard and Hannon-Dalby taking wickets in the last two overs of the day to keep their side in the game.

Against the opposition against which he made his championship debut at Edgbaston in 2007, England all-rounder Chris Woakes remained wicketless but bowled well only to beat the edges rather than find them.

Report supplied by ECB Reporters' Network.