COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION TWO ROUNDUP: If the game at Lord's between Middlesex and Derbyshire is drawn, Leicestershire will be promoted with a draw at Grace Road on Thursday
Canterbury (day three of four): Kent 293 & 206-5, Lancashire 284 - Kent lead by 215 runs with five wickets remaining
An exciting finish could be in prospect on the final day of the Rothesay County Championship between Kent and Lancashire at Canterbury, after the hosts reached 206 for 5 at stumps, a lead of 215.
Although rain wiped out much of day three, with only 38.3 overs bowled, Jaydn Denly hit 74 as Kent built their lead, before Mitch Stanley helped rein them in with two for 56.
With Ben Compton not expected to bat Kent are effectively six down and the game looks fascinatingly poised going into day four.
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Leicestershire are on the brink of promotion (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)
Leicester (day three of four): Gloucstershire 482 & 10-0, Leicestershire 342 - Gloucestershire lead by 150 runs with 10 wickets remaining
If Leicestershire's vision was to clinch promotion to Division One with a resounding victory, it looks unlikely to come to pass this week after a truncated third day of their Rothesay County Championship match left them trailing Gloucestershire by 150 runs.
Shan Masood compiled a typically elegant 111 to mark his first-class debut for the county with the 30th hundred of his career, but Leicestershire then lost their last six wickets for 22 to trail by 140 on first innings, bowled out for 342 as Gloucestershire seamer Matt Taylor finished with 5 for 70, backed up by new-ball partner Ajeet Singh Dale's 3 for 78.
Gloucestershire – who need a victory to keep their outside chance of promotion alive – were eight without loss from four overs in their second innings before a three-hour interruption due to rain, adding just two runs before a resumption at 5.30pm was curtailed after just 13 deliveries due to bad light. With earlier rain having delayed the start by 70 minutes, just 30 overs and one ball were bowled in all.
Even if a win eludes them, Leicestershire's lead in the division is so large that a top-two finish can still be confirmed this week if this match ends in a draw and the clash between third-placed Derbyshire and fourth-placed Middlesex at Lord's is also drawn.
Lord's (day three of four): Derbyshire 282 & 17-0, Middlesex 298 - Derbyshire lead by two runs with 10 wickets remaining
Caleb Jewell reached 1,000 County Championship runs for the season on a rain-ravaged third day of Derbyshire's clash with hosts Middlesex at Lord's.
Only 10 overs were possible, but it proved sufficient time for the Tasmanian left-hander to reach the landmark with a glance tickled to the fine leg fence. The 28-year-old, who reached his 1,000 in what was his 22nd innings for the county, also became the only wicket to fall, as Derbyshire closed on 33 for 1, bowled by a beauty from Ryan Higgins which flattened the off stump. The further frustration for Jewell was he hadn't reached the pavilion steps before the second rain interruption of the morning drove the players off for an early lunch.
Only three more overs were bowled, during which Luis Reece survived two huge lbw shouts from Toby Roland-Jones before rain prevented any further play.
Both sides are desperate for a win to keep any pressure on second placed Glamorgan in the Division Two promotion race, but it will take creative collaboration between the respective captains to contrive a positive result on the final day.
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Jaydn Denly made a half century for Kent (Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Northampton (day three of four): Glamorgan 467, Northamptonshire 413-9 - Northamptonshire trail by 54 runs with one wicket remaining
Saif Zaib continued his prolific summer, becoming the first Northamptonshire batter to score six Championship tons in a season since Lance Klusener in 2006 as he posted 145 on day three of this Rothesay County Championship against Glamorgan at Wantage Road.
Zaib, the second leading run scorer in Division Two, extended his overnight score of 76, smashing a total of 22 fours and two sixes as he shared a ninth wicket partnership of 56 in 15 overs with debutant Ben Whitehouse.
Despite Mason Crane taking 5 for 126, his second five-wicket haul this season, Zaib's innings further held up Glamorgan's promotion hunt as Northamptonshire moved to 413 for 9, 54 runs behind, when rain ended play early after just 95 minutes. With Ben Kellaway off the field injured, part-time spinner Kiran Carlson finished with 2 for 43.
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