Cricket: Brown adds dash of colour

WHILE the rain did its best to wash out the Sunday League yesterday, there was still time for Alistair Brown to fare well at Scarborough with an unbeaten 105 off 68 balls as Surrey beat Yorkshire on a faster run rate, writes Barrie Fairall.

Brown made the bulk of Surrey's 141 for 1 off 20.1 overs before the weather intervened, but at least the game produced one of only two results in a programme of nine. His second 50 came from only 24 deliveries after a stand of 101 for the fourth wicket by Craig White (63) and Ashley Metcalfe (43) had helped Yorkshire muster 204.

Middlesex, meanwhile, equalled the record number of League points in a season when their match at Hove was unresolved. Here, Desmond Haynes hit 65 as the side who have already secured the title reached 220 for 9. With Sussex unable to start their innings, the two points for a no-result gave Middlesex 58, which equalled the total by Sussex in 1982.

As for Essex, they are sure of finishing in second place thanks to another no-result - against Somerset at Weston-super-Mare - which is tough on third-placed Hampshire, who reached their reduced target of 120 in 20 overs against Derbyshire at Southampton.