The scoring rate has slowed down but Surrey are still ticking along, with Tom Lawes up to 81* and Ben Foakes creeping into the 60s.

Their partnership is 143 from 227 deliveries.

11 overs remain until the new ball becomes available which feels like a phase of the game everyone has in the back of their mind.

11 off the latest over from Keith Dudgeon, with Ben Raine leaning on an overpitched final delivery and sending it to the cover point boundary.

Handy partnership building between Raine 15* and Kasey Aldridge 19*... they have added 38 from 54 balls and are 22 shy of a second batting point.

Confident stuff from Asa Tribe who shuffles down the track and finds the mid-wicket boundary again - this time off Ben Coad.

New (old) ballpublished at 16:31 BST 3 April

16:31 BST 3 April

Hants v Essex 140-3

This partnership is starting to motor with Matt Critchley and Charlie Allison having added 73 together.

Batting against the old ball has looked fairly easy and despite Kyle Abbott getting the honour of three slips nothing much is going their way.

But Hampshire have managed to get the ball changed now with the old one not going through the rings so we will see what happens now.

Have to say, it did feel like Philip had gone a little early with the doom and gloom. Surrey are a good side, let's not forget.

Leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed continues his spell after tea but that one is too full in length, allowing Tom Price to punch it away past cover for four runs.

Bears skipper Ed Barnard has not picked up a wicket today but it's not for the lack of trying.

He's beaten the edge of Tom Lawes' bat on a number of occasions and this time finds an inside edge which loops over the stumps before dropping safe.

A brilliant pull shot from Lewis Goldsworthy sends Olly Stone to the retirement flats boundary.

Grey overhead but no rain yet.

Lyndon James bowling in tandem with Stone again.

Ben Raine has a stroke of luck as Keith Dudgeon returns to the attack, digging out a yorker and seeing his edge drop a foot short of the slips.

Dudgeon beats the edge and the pad from his next delivery and wipes his forehead in frustration.

He's one of the most talked-about young players on the county scene and Asa Tribe isn't going to miss out on a scoring opportunity like that.

Jack White overpitches on leg stump and the young Glamorgan opener clips it away sweetly through mid-wicket for four runs.

Back out for the final session. Feels like we'll have a mini session within it, with 16 overs left before the hosts can take the new ball.

Ed Barnard opens up from the City End after tea, with Ben Foakes on strike on 55* and Tom Lawes on a career-best 78* at the non-striker's end.

Lewis Goldsworthy gets off the mark with four through backward point.

The lights are still on here, but still no rain.

Tom Abell 81*.

Former Bridgwater CC and Lancashire seamer Will Williams is now playing for Gloucestershire and boy do they need him to take the wickets he took the week after bowling at me in club cricket, when he took three of Warwickshire's top order on his Championship debut.

He took the second wicket, Sam Robson lbw for 33, and third, Max Holden bowled for 32. But with Glos not picking specialist leggie Ed Middleton, they are relying on the small group of medium pacers and part-time finger spinners to try and take the remaining Middlesex wickets.

Ben Geddes fell for 25 just before the interval, former Derbyshire bat Leus du Plooy is 66* and Ryan Higgins 5*.

up for Durhampublished at 16:19 BST 3 April

16:19 BST 3 April

Durham 254-6 v Kent

A Grant Stewart no ball brings up the first Durham batting bonus point in the 59th over.

The following delivery is heading down leg until Ben Raine clips uppishly over mid-wicket for another four.

Durham will want a minimum of 300 here, and ideally push for 350+. And there's plenty of time to do it.

We have Division One cricket at Sophia Gardens for the first time since 2005.

Ben Coad takes the new ball for Yorkshire and Eddie Byrom turns his opening delivery away through the leg-side for four runs.

Nick Gledhill
BBC Essex

A shower interrupted play here just ahead of the scheduled tea interval but Essex will be pleased with their efforts in difficult batting conditions.

After losing Tom Westley to a finger injury and then impressive debutant Wiaan Mulder to a superb ball from Kyle Abbott, they rallied thanks to an unbroken stand between Matt Critchley and Charlie Allison.

Allison produced the shot of the day, a back foot cover driven four off Eddie Jack straight after an audacious upper cut for six from the previous delivery.

He has moved down to number six with Mulder’s arrival but that just underlines Essex's increased strength in depth this season.

Sonny Baker has bowled with great pace and it was his delivery that forced Westley out of the game after a length ball struck the Essex captain on the glove.

Hampshire’s relatively inexperienced attack - Kyle Abbott apart - hasn’t quite made the most of the conditions on offer.

Lucky you, Rob. Do let us know if you're tuning in from anywhere further afield this afternoon. It's a global game after all...

Martin Andersson hammers Ethan Brookes over mid-wicket for six as Derbyshire reach tea in a healthy position against Worcestershire.

Andersson reaches the interval on 64 not out, the hosts having added 131 to their 100-1 at lunch. Caleb Jewell earlier made 56, again failing to convert a good start into a big score for the county.

Tom Taylor has two wickets for Worcestershire but has been a little more expensive than usual, they have cost him 74 from 16 overs.

Glorious sunshine and lengthening shadows in the north east, but blimey it's blowy.

You can see the whites snapping in the breeze and the boundary 'toblerones' are having to be pinned in place by ground staff as the gusts are moving them in - and the batters have shown they don't need much help reaching them as is, today.

Calm after the storm on the field as Durham seek to rebuild towards batting points while Kent try to find a final push for the three wickets they desire.

Calvin Harrison sends down the final over of the afternoon session and it is Lancashire who will feel they are in command of these contest.

Northants have the bowling bonus point having eked out three but it is the wicket of Josh Bohannon which looks key with the Lancs batter unbeaten and 11 short of a century.

Michael Jones walks with him unbeaten on 14 but could well have gone on four when he was dropped at mid on by Luke Procter.

For all that Lancashire are in a strong position this looks a good track to bat on and two of the three to fall have been gift-wrapped with Luke Wells or George Bell putting a ribbon around their wickets.