Big shout from Dillon Pennington as he arrows a delivery into the pads of new man Will Rhodes.

But the appeal drifts into the Nottingham air as the umpire keeps his arms folded. An inside edge may have saved the batter.

A third straight maiden this morning from Pennington.

Jack Davies dabs Tom Bailey through backward point for four as Middlesex's second-innings total reaches 300.

It means their lead now exceeds 200 but there has been encouragement for Lancashire with Davies playing and missing on a number of occasions.

Kasey Aldridge rocks his head back as he fizzes one a whisker past Brett D'Oliveira's outside edge.

The Pears skipper had done well to withdraw his bat just in time from a Craig Overton jaffa in the previous over which narrowly missed the off-stump.

D'Oliveira follows up by cutting the next ball to the boundary as Aldridge offers him a bit of width.

Max Holden is under way for the day, tucking Tom Bailey off his hip for a single to move to 136 not out.

Bailey fizzes one past the outside edge of Jack Davies' bat to end the over.

Image source, Rex Features

Dom Sibley is finally up and running as he steers his 26th delivery down to the third-man rope for four.

Jamie Porter responds with the final ball of the over with a shout for LBW but it looks like an inside edge from Sibley onto his pads.

Whatever the conditions you always expect it to be a jittery start and Essex have bowled well.

The deficit is 196 runs for anyone keeping a tally.

Three singles off Ethan Bamber's first over of the day get Sussex up and running.

And then James Coles immediately down the track to lift Rob Yates' off spin over long-off for six. Very sweetly timed.

How far will they want to stretch this lead until they have a crack at the Bears for a second time? Would a lead of 350 by lunch be enough?

Coles then glances Bamber for four fine of third man. Some early intent from the visitors to press home their position.

Has George Balderson developed a little bit of extra nip over the winter?

He finds the edge of Jack Davies' bat but the ball doesn't quite carry and the slips can't prevent it running away for four.

Adam Finch edges Kasey Aldridge but it drops short of Craig Overton at second slip.

Good hands from the nightwatchman to just about play it into the ground.

He picks up two from the over to get the scoreboard ticking.

The first runs of the day as Rory Burns eases Sam Cook away to the backward-point boundary for four.

The next one has the Surrey skipper fishing outside his off-stump and edging past Simon Harmer at slip for four more.

That would have gone straight to a second slip...

Jamie Porter bowls a maiden to start us off.

Dom Sibley has now faced 21 deliveries and is yet to get off the mark.

Sam Cook is on from the Graham Gooch End at a sunny Chelmsford.

Brett D'Oliveira begins where he leaves off with solid defence to see out Craig Overton's opening salvo. Maiden.

Kasey Aldridge to share the bowling burden.

That first-ball wicket must have been a shock to the collective Middlesex system.

Jack Davies is the new batter and tucks Tom Bailey away for a couple to get off the mark and adds a single from the final ball of the over as the lead rises to 192.

George Balderson will bowl at the other end - but he has to wait while Davies walks back to the boundary edge to change his helmet.

Dillon Pennington, over the wicket, beats Colin Ackermann's outside edge with the fourth ball of the day.

The fifth ball takes off after the second ball had came through low to wicketkeeper Joe Clarke's shins.

Maiden.

Fergus O'Neill opens from the Radcliffe Road End.

The first ball of the day from Jamie Porter has Dom Sibley edging to first slip but it bounces just in front of Simon Harmer.

That is not what Surrey supporters need to be seeing.

Sibley plays the next one solidly enough.

Off we go for the final morning at Chelmsford - can Essex find the 10 wickets or will Surrey bat it out for a draw?

The Essex head coach Chris Silverwood believes they are in with a good shout with the conditions:

"It has started spinning out there, which is encouraging for us." said Silverwood.

"But we’ve got three excellent seam bowlers who are excellent at piling the pressure on the opposition followed up by a superstar spin bowler and Critch [Matt Critchley) has come to the party as well."

The first session will clearly dictate the direction of travel for this game.

Craig Overton will open up the day with the second new ball which is still only eight overs old and should offer a little something early on.

Worcs skipper Brett D’Oliveira resumes on 71 accompanied by nightwatcher Adam Finch and they’ll have their work cut out first up.