An eventful day of cricket, played under slate-grey skies with the floodlights on throughout, ended with Nottinghamshire needing seven more wickets to claim their second LV= County Championship success of the season.
Chasing a victory target of 259, Surrey had reached 73 for three when the deteriorating conditions brought a premature close with fourteen overs remaining unbowled.
Earlier Notts had been dismissed for 191 in their second innings, with Samit Patel top-scoring with 37.
"We’re confident and optimistic but it all depends on how people play on the final day.” Mick Newell
Mick Newell felt that this had developed into a really good game of championship cricket. “It’s been interesting - and with it being overcast and the pitch having a bit in it for the seamers, it’s been quite a challenging three days of cricket.”
The director of cricket added that it was vital that Notts had picked up three key wickets.
“We needed to make inroads tonight,” he said.
“It would have been very tough for us if Surrey had reached the close with no wickets lost – we’re confident and optimistic but it all depends on how people play on the final day.”
With a bit of an indifferent weather forecast around Newell is looking for ideal conditions to aid his side. “We’d like a bit of cloud around- that seems to affect the seam movement – and if we can get three or four relatively early wickets that should hopefully leave too much for the rest to do if we can get them into that position.”
Resuming from their overnight 24-1 Notts began the day in cavalier fashion with the nightwatchman Luke Fletcher clearly having been given the licence to go for his shots.
Hitting his first ball of the morning, from Jade Dernbach, for four, he then had a slice of fortune in the same opening over when a thickish edge brushed the fingertips of Vikram Solanki and flew to the fence.
Solanki had to leave the field for twenty minutes with a finger injury, during which time Fletcher found the ropes on a couple more occasions and was also dropped by Jason Roy at second slip.
Stuart Meaker made the breakthrough in the eighth over of the day as Fletcher’s innings of 26 (38 balls, 4x4) was finally curtailed by his next edge, as Zander de Bruyn held on to the chance – ironically fielding at third slip instead of Solanki.
Despite the floodlights having been on from the start, umpires Bodenham and O’Shaughnessy decided that the light was then too poor to continue and took the players from the field for half an hour.
Notts added a further 16 runs before a further stoppage enforced an early lunch at 78-2.
Dernbach’s first bowl from the Radcliffe Road End produced instant dividends as Cowan (20) played on to a delivery that shaped back into the left-hander.
Without addition to the score Notts lost another wicket three overs later as Tim Linley trapped Michael Lumb (28) lbw.
A theatrical tumble from the bowler, followed by a lengthy wait for umpire O’Shaughnessy’s verdict, preceded an obvious walk-off of disappointment for the left-hander.
Dernbach collected two wickets in as many deliveries as he had both James Taylor (13) and Riki Wessels (0) caught in the slips.
Samit Patel (37) played his shots before falling to Meaker, who followed it up by having Paul Franks (5) caught behind.
Zander de Bruyn claimed his third catch of the day to send back Steven Mullaney (8) but an entertaining last wicket stand of 30 between Ajmal Shahzad and Harry Gurney boosted the Notts total.
Fletcher’s fine day continued with the ball as Surrey began their chase. For the second time in the contest he dismissed Roy (5), smartly taken by Alex Hales at first slip.
He followed it up by having Arun Harinath (4) caught behind as the total slumped to 21-2.
The situation worsened for the London side thanks to a brilliant piece of fielding by Mullaney, who scooped up the ball to sensationally hit the stumps to run out Solanki (0).