Digging in is the order of the morning for Northants or they could find themselves following on in short order against Hampshire.

Josh Cobb is on 28 not out, but he isn't renowned as a defensively-minded batter - he likes to get on with it.

Discretion, though, may be a key word when facing the likes of Mohammad Abbas and Kyle Abbott. It's Abbas to bowl the first over.

Wonder if any of the Middlesex lads are superstitious about the "Nelson" figure?

Solid start from the Middlesex top order plus a crucial strike in the last over of day two by Stuart Broad to dismiss Pieter Malan.

Stay tuned. This could be a firecracker of a day's play.

Mark Stoneman resumes with new batter Stephen Eskinazi.

Stuart Broad will complete the over after striking with his first ball to end play last night.

Nick Browne and Tom Westley have built a fabulous platform for Essex over the first two truncated days with their unbeaten hundreds.

But this morning surely it's time to step on the gas. There are 36 overs left in which to pick up bonus points, and they need 161 runs to reach a maximum five with the bat.

With wickets in hand, this morning offers a good chance to accelerate their scoring.

Image source, Getty Images

Lancashire skipper Keaton Jennings hailed the evergreen skills of "young lad" Jimmy Anderson after the England paceman claimed 5-76 on the second day against Somerset.

"The way we bowled was absolutely fantastic on a very good surface. He ran in beautifully - as did the rest of the pack, they never gave up," Jennings told BBC Radio Lancashire.

"They kept tracking in which was really impressive. The energy and spirit in and around the group was awesome."

The left-hander then made an unbeaten 124, supported well by Luke Wells and Josh Bohannon, and added: "I'm playing nicely but you have to keep making contributions and put the team in a position where we're able to push the game forward."

Image source, Getty Images

Essex captain Tom Westley reaped the benefits of a more positive approach after reaching 138 not out on a rain-shortened second day at Canterbury.

“It’s nice for me to go on and get a score as it’s been frustrating to get into the 40s this season and not take that on," he told BBC Essex.

"I’ve probably not been as positive as that over the last couple of years, so I’m trying to get back to playing that way as that’s when I’m at my best.

"Kent will probably say they haven’t bowled as well as they would have liked but we’ve batted well so now we need to get a score on the board and see if we can take 20 wickets.”

We have ball by ball coverage from all seven games today, courtesy of our BBC local radio commentary teams (*some of them also fashion icons - see below). To follow a particular game, pick an audio link from the top of the page and we will supply regular text updates about events elsewhere.

Image source, BBC Nottingham Sport

By the way, it's the start of the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy today and you can listen to commentary on the game between Southern Vipers and Sunrisers by clicking here.

It's "dry and bright" at Sophia Gardens, says BBC Radio Wales Sport commentator Nick Webb.

No play was possible on day two so Durham will be looking to push on with a view to a declaration, while Glamorgan will hope to pick up the last four wickets asap.

Brydon Carse (53) and Liam Trevaskis (41) are set to continue their innings - their seventh-wicket stand is worth 81.

If Sussex do pick up two wins in two Championship rounds this weekend, much of the groundwork will have been laid by the young bowling duo of Jack Carson and Henry Crocombe.

The pair shared eight wickets between them in the two-wicket win over Durham last week, put on a crucial 10th wicket stand of 54 against Yorkshire yesterday and shared five wickets before stumps.

Carson also took a fine catch at deep midwicket off a full-blooded pull shot to dismiss Dom Bess.

He told BBC Sport: "That's something that's been enforced, the resilience in the team and trying to keep coming back from periods when you're behind in the game."

On batting with Henry Crocombe:

"He's quite talented from his time in the academy. He probably hasn't had the chance to show what he's got, but least week especially he's really worked hard and it shows."

On the Dom Bess catch:

"I knew I was in the game there. James Kirtley (bowling coach) was on the boundary behind me. I was going to make sure I didn't punch that one."

Image source, Getty Images

Hampshire's James Vince admitted to feeling a "bit scratchy" at times during an innings of 186 to set up his side's second-day declaration at Wantage Road.

"I felt out of sorts at The Oval last week so did a bit of work prior to this game. I had a little bit of luck here and there and I felt better as the innings went on," he told BBC Radio Solent.

"We set the game up really well with the bat and then to get through their top order - it was a very good day.

"To post 480 in conditions where it's good at times for batting but there's enough in the wicket, if you bowl in good areas, to extract a bit of uneven bounce and sideways movement, so encouraging signs for us."

We are going to have to wait a bit for the match to resume at Worcester following Friday's wash-out.

The umpires will take a look at conditions at 11:00. We will keep you posted on the situation.

Matthew Waite and Josh Tongue are the not out batters and Tom Price needs one more wicket to complete a five-for to go with his swashbuckling first-day hundred.

Before we go any further, here's a bit of news that Durham followers - and no doubt many other fans around the country - will be interested in.

Watching BBC Breakfast earlier this morning, the forecast provided by Matt Taylor looked a lot more promising than yesterday, with the north and south west the most likely centres of any rain.

Fingers crossed for a clear one at our seven grounds - although there will be at least one delayed start for 'drying out' work (more on that in a moment).

For more localised information, use the search box on the BBC Weather site.

Division One

Kent v Essex 289-1

Middlesex 111-2 v Nottinghamshire 364

Middlesex trail by 253 with 8 wickets standing

Northamptonshire 95-5 v Hampshire 482-8 dec

Northants trail by 387 with 5 wickets standing

Somerset 441 v Lancashire 302-1

Lancashire trail by 139 with 9 wickets standing

Division Two

Glamorgan v Durham 382-6 - no play on day two

Sussex 361 v Yorkshire 216-7

Yorkshire trail by 145 with 3 wickets standing

Worcestershire 118-7 v Gloucestershire 231 - no play on day two

Image source, Getty Images

Ah, the huddle. The 'sacred space' where plans are made, tactics are fine-tuned and - in April - where everyone can have a good old moan about how cold it is.

Welcome to our coverage of day three in the latest County Championship matches. Play is due to start at 11:00.