Surrey have won the County Championship title for a third straight year, the first side to do so since Yorkshire between 1966 and 1968.
Their 10-wicket win over Durham, completed on Thursday at the Oval, left Somerset needing to defeat Lancashire at Old Trafford to extend the title race to the final round of fixtures. earning their eighth victory of the season.
Somerset began Friday requiring 189 runs to win, with just four wickets in hand – and were in trouble on the very first ball, Luke Wells bowling Lewis Gregory with a googly. The three remaining wickets fell within 30 minutes as Lancashire wrapped up a 168-run victory and allowed Surrey to begin their celebrations.
“It’s a whole squad, group of staff coming together and putting in a heck of a lot of work over a long period of time,” said the Surrey head coach, Gareth Batty. “To do it three times in a row is very satisfying. We shall enjoy today and then start the hard work tomorrow to do it all again.”
Players and staff had gathered in the Oval dressing room on Friday morning to watch Somerset’s failed chase against Lancashire. The champions have one match remaining in this year’s campaign, an away trip to Essex, which begins next Thursday.
Lancashire face Worcestershire in their last game, but Division One survival is out of their hands even they win. Their fate may be decided by Nottinghamshire’s game against Warwickshire at Trent Bridge.
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