County Championship: Malan ton gives Middlesex advantage
- From the section Counties
| LV= County Championship Division One, Lord's (close, day three) |
| Middlesex 234 & 326-8: Malan 118 not out, Robson 77; Magoffin 3-70 |
| Sussex 300: Machan 81, Yardy 70; Patel 4-42, Roland-Jones 3-88 |
| Middlesex lead by 260 runs |
| Middlesex 4 pts, Sussex 6 pts |
| Match scorecard |
Dawid Malan's fine century for Middlesex left Sussex facing the prospect of a tricky final day chase.
Malan struck 118 not out and put on an eighth-wicket stand of 77 with Toby Roland-Jones at Lord's as the hosts closed on 326-8 - a lead of 260.
Middlesex, who resumed on 47-0, lost three quick wickets after Sam Robson nicked Ashar Zaidi behind for 77.
Malan and Roland-Jones (36) batted for most of the evening session before Roland-Jones was out to the final ball.
| Sam Robson - England's forgotten man |
|---|
| Robson has played seven Tests for England, all of them last summer against Sri Lanka and India |
| He averages 30.54 with the bat for his country, with a top score of 127 |
Malan's 201-ball knock, his second Championship century of 2015, took his average for the summer to 104.40.
However, Roland-Jones' hour and a half at the crease could prove to be just as vital as he helped turn what looked like being a modest lead into a big one for Middlesex.
Ollie Robinson (3-86) gave Sussex a late boost by removing him lbw with what proved to be the last delivery of the day, but the visitors look set to face a target of around 300.