Kevin Hand
BBC Radio London

Image source, Rex Features

Was that a googly? John Simpson has gone a long way across there and was hit on the back foot, backed right up onto his stumps.

Six-down with 9.5 overs to come - one wicket away from the extra half hour becoming potentially available.

Luke Hollman is no mug with the bat and it bemuses me slightly that Josh de Caires is at nine, having opened in the Championship this season.

Image source, Rex

Ryan Higgins is really frustrating Essex out there.

He is fighting hard, and has eight from 45 deliveries. My colleague Alex Hoad has said that he should change his name to Diggins...

How do we feel about that pun? Hit those thumbs, and let us know.

John Simpson and Ryan Higgins deal with Matt Critchley's first over of the innings, and their reward is a drinks break.

Much needed in this weather.

Image source, Rex Features

Yorkshire head coach Ottis Gibson said his side were overdue a Championship win after beating Derbyshire by 277 runs earlier this afternoon - but it came at a cost, with Matthew Fisher unable to bowl because of a side strain.

"I’ve been saying for a while that we’ve been playing some decent four-day cricket. If not for the weather, we would have won a few more games," said Gibson.

"Scoreboard pressure meant that they had no chance of winning the game. It gave us the opportunity to attack a lot more. We did that and got our rewards.

"It was unfortunate to lose Matthew Fisher....even then, the likes of Matthew Revis really stood up when Fish went down."

• Read full match report here.

Sam Cook drifts down the leg-side, and John Simpson whips it down to fine leg for four.

A punch through backward point bring the Middlesex keeper two more, and he moves onto 26.

Three times in a row Simon Harmer tosses it into the rough outside the right-hander's off-stump, and three times in a row Ryan Higgins pads up.

Harmer pleads for an lbw on each occasion, but the umpire's having none of it.

Batting looks tough out there.

Kent sign India one-day international leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal for their final three County Championship games.

I am slightly amazed that Sam Cook still hasn't taken a wicket in this second Middlesex innings.

He beat Mark Stoneman countless times earlier on without any reward, and now he goes past John Simpson's defensive prod.

Ryan Higgins gets a life!

He runs at Simon Harmer, but is beaten by the enormous turn on offer, and is stranded out of his crease.

However, a fumble from Adam Rossington behind the stumps allows him to scramble back.

Simon Harmer continues to twirl away, but a very rare loose delivery allows John Simpson to clip one off his pads for four through the leg-side.

Paul Newton
BBC Essex sport

I'm disappointed to see Max Holden out because I think he is very much at the forefront of Middlesex's young talents.

It must be said Umesh Yadav is looking pretty much as formidable as Sam Cook and Jamie Porter.

He's looking a real handful. I wasn't as impressed with him in the first innings but boy in this second innings he's barely put a ball out of place.

Image source, Rex Features

Max Holden unfurls a textbook cover drive that races away to the fence.

Don't run for them.

Assuming Essex go on to beat Middlesex, either this afternoon or tomorrow, they will be 18 points behind Division One leaders Surrey with two matches each to play.

Here are the remaining fixtures for the title rivals. Suffice to say, there are only two other teams who will have a say in the outcome.

19 September

Surrey v Northamptonshire

Essex v Hampshire

26 September

Hampshire v Surrey

Northamptonshire v Essex

Image source, Rex Features

Durham skipper Scott Borthwick likened opener Alex Lees to Sri Lanka great Kumar Sangakkara following their seven-wicket win over Sussex earlier today.

Lees added an unbeaten 26 to his first-innings century and now has 1,281 runs this season at an average of 75.35.

• Full match report here

"Batting with Alex Lees, sometimes it feels as though I'm batting with Kumar Sangakkara because he doesn't miss. He has been in incredible form and long may it continue. He's dominating and putting bowling sides under pressure," said Borthwick.

Durham only need five points to be sure of promotion and he added: "I knew this team had the potential to be champions and dominate this league. We've played with a lot more freedom this year and attacked a lot more to try and win games of cricket."

He's had to go home and will miss the end of the season, but here's a bit of good news for Leicestershire followers.

Division One

Essex 304 & 319-7 dec v Middlesex 179 & 42-4 (day three)

Hampshire 308 & 330-3 dec v Somerset 137 & 316

Hampshire won by 185 runs

Northamptonshire 232 & 266 v Lancashire 524

Lancashire won by an innings and 26 runs

Division Two

Durham 505-9 dec & 57-3 v Sussex 266 & 295

Durham won by seven wickets

Yorkshire 297 & 520-9 dec v Derbyshire 247 & 293

Yorkshire won by 277 runs

Kevin Hand
BBC Radio London

This is the stuff of dreams for Essex in this afternoon's session, and the stuff of dreams for Kent too.

Middlesex are up against it, but they have been all match - from losing the toss on the first morning really.

Essex really are bowling incredibly well in this game.