Centuries from Dom Sibley and Dan Lawrence helped Surrey gain a first-innings lead of 63 but their County Championship Division One match against Essex at the Oval looks like ending in a draw.
Surrey were bowled out for 472 in 156.3 overs after Sibley made 101 and Lawrence 125 against his former county.
It left Essex with nine overs to negotiate and they got to stumps unscathed on 19-0, trailing by 44 going into the final day.
Surrey’s first home game of the season against Leicestershire saw 1,474 runs scored and only 24 wickets fall and this fixture is following a similar pattern.
The odd ball bounced disconcertingly and the delivery which bowled Ben Foakes from leg-spinner Matt Critchley scuttled along the deck.
But for the most part the bat has dominated with the risk-free stand of 121 in 45 overs between Sibley and Lawrence the highlight from Surrey’s perspective.
Resuming on 192-3 they accumulated patiently in the morning session with 79 runs in 30 overs as Surrey set about going past Essex’s score to at least give their bowlers the chance to apply some pressure on day four.
Lawrence went to his 50 by whipping Noah Thain through mid-wicket and brought up the hundred partnership with a lovely cover-driven four off Jamie Porter.
Essex’s attack was willing enough – and Sam Cook deserved more reward for maintaining a probing line and length during three excellent spells – but there was little movement on a well-grassed but slow pitch.
Sibley, 74 overnight, spent nearly 20 minutes on 99 before taking a single to backward point to bring up his 27th first-class hundred and a welcome return to form after his first four innings of the season brought him a modest 88 runs.
But having spent more than six-and-a-half hours and faced 283 balls it was a surprise when he was dismissed as Cook produced a fine delivery which seamed off a good length to find a thin edge.
Lawrence was always the more aggressive of the two, picking up the tempo after lunch by taking two more boundaries off Porter on his way to the 20th first-class hundred of his career.
He had moved on to 125 when a rare misjudgement saw him pick out deep mid-wicket trying to clear the rope for the third time, much to Noah Thain’s relief after he put down a difficult return catch earlier in the over. Lawrence also hit 15 fours.
Pepper missed a straightforward stumping opportunity off Critchley when Tom Lawes was on 11 and he and Jordan Clark took Surrey past Essex’s 409 in a stand of 67 for the seventh wicket either side of tea before they departed in successive overs.
Lawes drilled a low return catch to Simon Harmer and in the next over Clark was lbw to Critchley, who had switched to the Pavilion End.
Harmer wrapped things up with the wickets of Sean Abbott driving to mid-off and Matt Fisher, caught behind down the leg side, to finish with 3-69.
Report by ECB Reporters’ Network, supported by Rothesay.
