Somerset go second after draw with Surrey

Somerset moved back into second place in the County Championship table despite having to settle for a draw against Surrey at Taunton.  

The 11 points were enough to give Jamie Cox's team a four-point advantage over third-placed Kent, with both teams having two games left to play.

The Hollioake brothers helped Surrey to safety after they had been set an unlikely victory target of 407 in 83 overs.

Skipper Adam hit 83 and Ben 56 to see the visitors to 294 for six at the close. Alistair Brown was the other main contributor with 64 as the match petered out on a typically batsman-friendly Taunton pitch.

Somerset had batted on for 35 minutes at the start of the day, extending their overnight 265 for five to 311 for six before Cox declared at the fall of Ian Blackwell's wicket.

Blackwell had added a fluent 67 to his first-inning's century and again looked in prime form as he reached 50 off 59 balls with seven fours and a six.

Richard Johnson, who finished with match figures of nine for 152, then got to work with the new ball and soon had Surrey in trouble at 24 for two.

Ian Ward was trapped lbw for four with a full-length delivery, although he clearly disagreed with umpire Jeff Evans' verdict.

Then Gareth Batty drove loosely at a Johnson outswinger to give wicket-keeper Rob Turner his seventh catch of the match.

When Mike Carberry was run out for 33 soon after lunch as a result of a mix up with Adam Hollioake over a quick single, Somerset looked on course for victory.

But Hollioake and Brown put on 95 for the fourth wicket before Hollioake edged Steffan Jones to Turner, having faced 115 balls and hit 12 fours.

Brown reached a studied half-century off 117 deliveries, with nine boundaries. He then nicked Johnson to Turner, enabling the keeper to equal a Somerset record with nine dismissals in the match.

Ben Hollioake had become the third Surrey player to pass 50 when he was taken at second slip by Keith Dutch off the hardworking Johnson to make the total 274 for six.

There still 14 overs to go but, for all Johnson's heroic efforts, Somerset could not force another breakthrough as Jonathan Batty and Martin Bicknell stood firm.

It was a special match for Taunton-based Ray Julian, given a guard of honour by the Somerset players as he took the field after tea for his last session as a first-class umpire at the County Ground.

Surrey took nine points as a result of a fine last-day batting effort.