Middlesex put Yorkshire on the ropes

Champions Middlesex are on course to claim their first championship win of the season after taking seven Yorkshire wickets after tea on the second day.

Yorkshire collapsed from 82 for two to 178 for nine thanks to a mixture of poor shot selection and some probing bowling, particularly by Toby Roland-jones, who removed Alex Lees and Peter Handscomb.

The only prolonged resistance for Yorkshire came from Gary Ballance, who held the innings together with an unbeaten halfcentury, and a composed 38 by teenager Harry Brook on debut.

A total of 446 might have been short of what Middlesex had targeted when they had been 364 for four but with deliveries starting to keep low on a pitch that has baked in 30C heat for two days, Yorkshire’s batsmen found it tough.

Lees was unfortunate to fall leg before to a ball which pitched well outside the line and a brief spell of Yorkshire supremacy followed as Adam Lyth and Brook, an 18-yearold from Keighley, added 64 for the second wicket.

But shortly after tea off-spinner Ollie Rayner surprised Brook with extra bounce and he was well held at short leg by Steve Eskinazi. Lyth had gone for 37 just before tea to medium-pacer Ryan Higgins.

Roland-jones returned with an impressive spell from the Nursery End which gained its reward when Handscomb edged to slip on the drive before Steven Finn bowled Adil Rashid off an inside edge for a duck and later had Ben Coad caught behind.

Andy Hodd bottom-edged a pull at Tim Murtagh on to his stumps before Higgins returned to pick up Steve Patterson and Jack Brooks.

Yorkshire had dominated the first session, taking the last six Middlesex wickets for 82 runs before the hosts were dismissed just after lunch. The key dismissal was that of Sam Robson, who batted for just short of seven hours for his 159 when he drove at Coad and was caught behind.