Northamptonshire were all-but relegated from LV= Insurance County Championship Division One following their two-wicket defeat to Warwickshire at Edgbaston.
Warwickshire survived a top-order collapse courtesy of a Ben Sanderson hat-trick to chase down 176 in 60 overs after Northamptonshire declared to try and force victory in the must-win match.
The hosts fell to 24 for five following the hat-trick, but Michael Burgess made an unbeaten 78 and added 70 with Ed Barnard for the sixth wicket before an unbroken ninth-wicket stand of 52 with Olly Hannon-Dalby saw the hosts over the line.
Middlesex secured a draw with Lancashire which boosted their chances of securing their top-flight status next season.
Middlesex were 160 for three with Jack Davies unbeaten on 65, his maiden first-class fifty, and Stevie Eskinazi on 26 not out when the players eventually shook hands at 4.50pm – with Lancashire only batting once in the game after they were dismissed for 413 in the morning.
Kent held on to secure a draw with Nottinghamshire in a thrilling finale at Canterbury.
Joe Clarke struck an unbeaten 141 and Brett Hutton compiled a career-best 84 as the hosts, following on, made 348 to set Kent a victory target of 168.
Asitha Fernando took three quick wickets to help reduce Kent to 59 for five before former Nottinghamshire all-rounder Joey Evison steadied the ship with an unbeaten 13 off 66 balls to keep Steven Mullaney’s side at bay.
Jaydev Unadkat took six wickets to help Sussex boost their promotion chances with just their second win of the season in Division Two with a 15-run victory over Leicestershire.
Indian left-armer Undakat took figures of six for 94 from 32.4 overs and cleaned up the last four wickets in just 31 balls as they bowled out the resilient Foxes for a superb 483 – with Colin Ackermann making 136.
Sussex will visit winless Derbyshire next week before finishing the season at home to Gloucestershire but second-placed Worcestershire still hold an 18-point advantage over them.
Sam Northeast and Eddie Byrom hit centuries to help Glamorgan draw with Yorkshire in Cardiff.
Northeast finished proceedings unbeaten on 166, while Byrom made 101 before he was bowled by Dom Bess and captain Kiran Carlson chipped in with a half-century which saw him pass 1,000 runs in a season for the first time in his career.
Glamorgan picked up their 11th draw in 13 matches this season while Yorkshire remain bottom of the table despite starting the day with a slight chance of claiming an innings victory.
First-class debutant Ed Middleton and Graeme van Buuren produced an unbeaten stand of 77 as Gloucestershire scrambled a draw with fellow strugglers Derbyshire in Bristol.
The pair put on a stubborn seventh-wicket stand to end Derbyshire’s hopes of a first victory of the campaign.
Gloucestershire had slipped to 131 for six in their second innings, holding a narrow lead of 105 with a possible 43 overs left in the day but Middleton’s 39 off 91 balls and Van Buuren’s 48 from 100 saw them to 208 for six at the close as both teams remain winless.
For exclusive stories and all the detailed cricket news you need, subscribe to The Cricket Paper website, digital edition, or newspaper from as little as 14p a day.
