Image source, Adrian Harms/BBC Sussex

Blue skies and light clouds here but the field is still very damp after yesterday's soaking, which continued into the night.

An early lunch will be taken at 12:00.

We will keep you updated.

Matthew Waite is wide of off stump. No need for Freddie McCann to play that.

McCann blocks on the back foot to see out the over.

Now Khurram Shahzad will bowl to Ben Slater from the New Road End.

Prompt start at Grace Road.

Josh Hull will bowl the first over for Leicestershire.

Dan Lawrence resumes on 29* with Ben Foakes on 41* and Ed Barnard has five balls of yesterday's aborted over to complete to start the day.

Freddie McCann will takes strike first, facing Matthew Waite.

He's 21 not out. Three balls left in the rain-disrupted over.

McCann got off to a great start yesterday before battening down the hatches to get through to stumps.

Ben Slater struggled to time the ball off the square early on but he started to hit his stride last night with some sweetly-timed drives and clips and he resumes on 17.

Essex needed to get 10 wickets today to have any chance of victory, and they have decided to get cracking at that target as soon as possible...

Alex Lees and Emilio Gay will open up, with Jamie Porter taking the new ball.

Right, enough preamble we want action.

In the unforgettable - and poetic - words of Delia Smith: 'Let's be havin' you."

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What will Essex do, we asked a little earlier.

We have our answer.

Essex have declared on their overnight 457-8 and will bowl at Durham, who trail by 124 runs.

If a couple go down early, get the popcorn ready.

Somehow Worcestershire need to take nine Notts wickets for under 96 runs to keep realistic hopes alive of avoiding relegation.

Notts need a win to challenge Surrey at the top of the table.

But the Pears might have had a few more runs but for a costly error with the bat.

Ethan Brookes had put on 52 precious second-innings runs with Gareth Roderick to revive Worcester from 68-5, but then perished cutting a loose, wide ball to deep cover off Lyndon James.

From that point, the Pears declined.

They lost Matthew Waite first ball LBW and the last three wickets tumbled for 40 runs.

Though Tom Taylor responded immediately with a superb delivery to bowl Hameed in the third over, Notts remain in a good position to pick up their fifth win of the campaign and a valuable 19 points.

If they do so, that cranks the pressure up on Surrey to get a result of their own against Warwickshire at the Oval when the weather allows.

The forecast at Worcester is fair currently but likely to not so great this afternoon.

Notts will need a good start and early momentum.

Kent lead by 215 with five wickets standing but it'll be a while before they get to build on that as the Garden of England has been decidedly soggy this morning and we won't start on time.

Image source, Getty Images

Right then, what's going to happen here?

Surrey added 95 runs to their lead of 179 in the 21 overs of intermittent action on day three, but lost Ollie Pope for a swashbuckling 78 five balls before the first rain delay of many arrived.

Given second-placed Notts are looking to wrap up victory at Worcester will Rory Burns (pictured) stick or twist... is a lead of 274 enough to try and force a final day win against Warwickshire or would they fancy the Bears to rattle them off and establish themselves in the title challenge with two games to go.

In which case will they try to thrash a quickfire 75-odd with Ben Foakes and Dan Lawrence at the crease?

Clear skies above London at the moment.

All eyes on 10:30 BST.

The innings gap is 54 and Northants skipper Luke Procter has opted against sending out two young bowlers to bat on.

Could be interesting...

A chance for Glamorgan to try and force a result and close that gap a little on the Division Two leaders Leicestershire?

Weather - be nice.

It is not really in the interests of either of these mid-table teams to suffer a rain-affected draw today, but that may happen.

There was no play at all yesterday and there is only a slim chance of play today - and that will probably be limited to around a single session.

If, however, the weather relents, Sussex need to somehow score another 241 on a pitch that has been a little two-paced and spin friendly more often than not.

Sussex spinners James Coles and Jack Carson took eight wickets between them on this pitch, while Hampshire spinner Bjorn Fortuin managed 4-30 in their first innings.

There was also plenty of seam and bounce for Hampshire's Kyle Abbott and also Sussex and Indian pace bowler Jaydev Unadkat, at least with the new ball.

If there is no win for either team and somehow a result is fashioned (instead of likely draws) at Chelmsford or at Taunton in Yorkshire's favour, then both teams are in danger of sliding a little closer to the drop zone.

Image source, Rex Features

The weather has done Somerset no favours so far this week as they have sought to maintain their faint hopes of a first Championship title.

Only 129 overs have been bowled over the first three days out of the 298 there should have been.

It is hard therefore to see how they can possibly force a win, barring two Yorkshire collapses, or a contrived finish agreed by the two skippers.

The forecast isn't great, but Yorkshire could do with a batting point or two to ease them further away from the relegation places.

Image source, Getty Images

What will Essex do?

No imminent threat of rain at Chelmsford, Essex have a lead of 124, thanks largely to Dean Elgar's 150 and Matt Critchley's rapid 129, and the key battle has already been won by the hosts, who picked up two bonus points more than Durham to take their lead over the second-bottom visitors to 14 points in the table.

At a guess Shane Snater (9*) and Doug Bracewell (22*) might have a crack at building a lead of 200+ before Jamie Porter joins them and Simon Harmer takes the ball on a final afternoon track to see if they can conjure some magic.

Elgar (pictured) said: "It was nice to get a score. The season hasn't really gone my way.

"The wicket’s always had something in it, it’s had something for three days, sideways movement, not much in the air, but off the wicket definitely.

"The wicket is still creating divots which shows a bit of moisture under the grass, so hopefully those things will work in our favour when it’s our time to bowl."

Image source, Rex Features

Leicestershire began the game needing a maximum of 21 points to be certain of promotion to Division One for next season.

As events have transpired, a draw in this game would only earn them 12 - but that will be enough providing the Middlesex v Derbyshire match ends in the same result.

For Gloucestershire, the need to press for a win is much more important and if they can pull it off, they could be third in the table if the game at Lord's is drawn.

They will resume with a 150-run lead and paceman Ajeet Singh Dale said: "We won’t play reckless cricket but we’ll do what we think we need to with the bat to give ourselves the best chance."

Image source, Rex Features

After just 10 overs of play on day three, however events play out at Lord's today, Derbyshire know that next week's home game against second-placed Glamorgan is going to be an absolute must-win.

They began this match against Middlesex three points clear of their opponents, but 24 adrift of the Welsh county.

And assuming we are heading towards a draw, Glamorgan may stretch that advantage with a similar result at Northampton, having earned more bonus points.

Rory Haydon marked his Championship debut with two wickets in Middlesex's first innings and told BBC Radio Derby: "It's very frustrating. We'd have liked a full day's play to try and get ourselves ahead in the game, but that's not been the case."

It was a frustrating on-off, on-off day yesterday and it looks like we are in for more of the same today.

The BBC Weather summary, external says: "A blustery, showery day ahead today. Some downpours will be heavy with a chance of thunderstorms.

"This morning the bulk of the showers will be in the west. This afternoon showers will crop up more widely across the UK."

Division One

Essex 457-8 v Durham 333

Essex lead by 124 with 2 wickets standing

Somerset 441-6 dec v Yorkshire 17-0

Yorkshire trail by 424 with 10 wickets standing

Surrey 246 & 276-2 v Warwickshire 248

Surrey lead by 274 with 8 wickets standing

Sussex 122 & 37-1 v Hampshire 226 & 173 - no play on day three

Sussex need 241 to win with 9 wickets standing

Worcestershire 182 & 40-1 v Nottinghamshire 207

Notts need another 96 to win with 9 wickets standing

Division Two

Kent 293 & 206-5 v Lancashire 284

Kent lead by 215 with 5 wickets standing

Leicestershire 342 v Gloucestershire 482 & 10-0

Gloucestershire lead by 150 with 10 wickets standing

Middlesex 298 v Derbyshire 283 & 33-1

Derbyshire lead by 18 runs with 9 wickets standing

Northamptonshire 413-9 v Glamorgan 467

Northants trail by 54 runs with 1 wicket standing