After a delayed start - and more crucially a delayed lunch - following morning rain in the county, Worcestershire are in bother here.

Derbyshire now lead the bruised Pears by 200, with still five wickets in hand.

Captain Leus du Plooy reached his double century on the stoke of lunch - the first in Division Two this season.

That followed the efforts of fellow South African Wayne Madsen, who was out earlier for 143

Division One

Chelmsford: Essex 457, Warwickshire 158 & 156-4

Southampton: Hampshire 419, Middlesex 150 & 66-4

Wantage Road: Northamptonshire 237 & 30-2, Kent 621

Taunton: Somerset 163 & 365-5, Nottinghamshire 186

The Oval: Lancashire 274 & 203-5, Surrey 360

Division Two

Cardiff: Glamorgan 242 & 110-2, Sussex 203

Leicester: Durham 516-7 dec, Leicestershire 418-8 (106 overs)

New Road: Worcestershire 237, Derbyshire 349-5 (100.5 overs)

(Latest - Delayed lunch at 1:30)

Leeds: Yorkshire 550-9 dec, Gloucestershire 232-5 (57 overs)

(No play before lunch - rain)

Adrian Harms
BBC Sussex at Sophia Gardens

Slow but steady progress from Glamorgan, adding just 64 runs to lead by 149 on a slow pitch where scoring has been difficult throughout the game.

Zain-ul-Hassan is just three runs short of a maiden first-class half-century at lunch. He has been patience personified having faced 161 balls and batted for over three and a half hours

There is precious little in the pitch to encourage the seamers, and it may well be that spin will hold the key to any possible positive result.

Leicestershire trail Durham by 99 with still two wickets remaining as they go to lunch in Leicester.

Nick Gledhill
BBC Essex

Essex remain on course to go second in Division One after taking three more Warwickshire wickets on the third morning.

In the absence of Sam Hain, the overnight second-wicket partnership between Rob Yates and Will Rhodes was crucial for the visitors.

It had stretched to 97 when Jamie Porter had Rhodes caught behind, the ball after keeper Will Buttleman had missed a chance.

Yates fell to a classic Simon Harmer off break to a left hander, then Ed Barnard drove Doug Bracewell to Porter at mid off.

That brought together Jacob Bethell and Dan Mousley who have both played fine shots in adding 34.

Defeat looks inevitable for Warwickshire with a deficit of 143, but they will be hoping one or both of these young batters can take something from the day.

Kevin Hand
BBC Radio London

Hampshire are on the verge of an emphatic victory in a match they've dominated since winning the toss.

Liam Dawson has done no harm at all to his claim for a Test recall with eight wickets in the match along with his first-innings century.

Nick Gubbins registered his slowest first-class century and it looks like a masterstroke now from the Hampshire number three as Middlesex, his former county, have struggled to muster much time in the middle.

Felix Organ is turning his offspinners considerably, while Dawson has the ball on a piece of string.

The toss was indeed a big one to win for the hosts but it is hard to see how Middlesex's young spinners would have outbowled Dawson and his understudy Organ, even if the call had gone in their favour.

The pitch is turning considerably as you would expect of the particularly dry surface that was produced to favour the hosts' more experienced spin attack.

Anthony Gibson
BBC Radio Somerset

Rather grey cricket under unremittingly grey skies this morning, as Somerset extended their lead on a pitch which seems to be getting flatter with every over.

George Bartlett missed out on a new first-class best by just four runs when he was clean bowled by Dane Paterson for 134, but James Rew has made largely untroubled progress to yet another 50.

Given Somerset's risk-averse approach to declarations, one suspects it won't be until Notts get the chance to bat again that proceedings will get a welcome injection of excitement.

Ben Watts
BBC Radio Kent

A historic day for Daniel Bell-Drummond, becoming just the third Kent player to score a triple century.

There were nervous moments before he got there, as Kent wickets fell and Arshdeep Singh mixed slogs with blocks at the other end.

Bell-Drummond has now scored 854 runs in June, the majority of those coming in the T20 Blast where his efforts have fuelled Kent’s dramatic turnaround in form.

With wickets for Arshdeep Singh and Joe Denly before lunch, Kent lead by 354 runs with eight more wickets needed for what would be an important victory at the bottom of the Division One table.

Kent have only claimed 20 wickets in one match this season - that was against Northamptonshire at Canterbury in their opening fixture. Can they repeat the feat here?

Nightwatchman Will Wllliams has stolen the headlines this morning with his maiden first-class half-century.

Just one wicket lost then - Daryl Mitchell for 30 - and first-innings half-centurion Phil Salt, dropped on 1, is still there on 25.

Lancashire's morning - 'and the lead has been extended to 117.

But the new ball is due. And they are facing a Surrey side who chased down 501 to win last time out, admittedly on a featherbed at Canterbury.

Matt Critchley and his occasional leg-spin is introduced for Essex.

He starts with two of the filthiest long hops that you could imagine and handed Dan Mousley eight easy runs.

We have all played with club cricketers capable of such filth!

Maiden first-class 50 for Will Williamspublished at 12:58 British Summer Time 27 June 2023

12:58 BST 27 June 2023

Lancashire 274 & 202-5, Surrey 360

Nightwatchman Will Wllliams had a best first-class score this morning of 38.

He has not only gone past that, but now also gone a step further and turned this innings into his maiden fifty, with a single down to long leg.

One over of Will Jacks to come before lunch.

The perils of fielding at short leg...

Matthew Montgomery is struck clean on the helmet by a flick off the bat from Kasey Aldridge.

Thankfully Montgomery is OK, although it may be a bit unfair if his team-mates think that should have been caught!

Lancashire now lead by 100published at 12:47 British Summer Time 27 June 2023

12:47 BST 27 June 2023

Lancashire 274 & 186-5, Surrey 360

Reasonable job done by the visitors this morning.

And nightwatchman Will Williams, maye inspired by the efforts of Surrey heroes Sean Abbott and Dan Worrall yesterday, has led the resistance.

His single takes him to 36, with Phil Salt on 23. And Lancashire now lead by exactly 100.

Nine overs to the new ball though.

for James Rewpublished at 12:34 British Summer Time 27 June 2023

12:34 BST 27 June 2023

Somerset 163 & 344-5 v Nottinghamshire 186

What a summer James Rew is having!

A second half-century to go with three hundreds for the Somerset wicket-keeper.

He nudges one down to fine leg for two to get to 50 and then confidently flicks one to deep square for a four as he continues to bat very nicely.