Strauss responds to Ramprakash

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Mark Ramprakash converts his overnight unbeaten 125 into a towering 223 to propel Surrey to 490 all out on the second day

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Andrew Strauss used his return to the scene of his Ashes triumph last summer to belatedly find his form for Middlesex against Surrey at the Brit Oval.

Strauss finished the second day of the LV= County Championship Division Two encounter unbeaten on 54 after watching former England batsman Mark Ramprakash turn an overnight century into a superb 223 as Surrey amassed 490.

With Scott Newman, Strauss’ fellow opener, hitting an unbeaten 79 in his first match against his former county, Middlesex reached 148 without loss by the close - trailing by 342.

England captain Strauss certainly needed some runs in his last county appearance before the start next week of the two-Test series against Bangladesh.

In 11 previous championship innings for Middlesex this season, Strauss had made only 262 runs at an average of 23.81, with just one half-century. In three further Clydesdale Bank 40 innings, he had managed only another 60 runs with a top score of 26.

Strauss, who missed the winter tour to Bangladesh in order to rest, also watched from afar as a Paul Collingwood-led England lifted the World Twenty20 on Sunday.

He would not have wanted to link up again with England without some significant runs behind him and it was his good fortune to find himself batting on a true Oval surface.

Ramprakash’s innings, too, showed Strauss just what was possible as the 40-year old moved on majestically from his overnight 125.

It was Ramprakash’s 11th double century for Surrey, putting him just one behind Sir Jack Hobbs’ county record. Hobbs, though, made 144 centuries for Surrey; this was Ramprakash’s 57th three-figure score for the county.

In addition, Ramprakash moved into joint fifth position on the all-time list of first-class double-century makers when he thrashed a short ball from Dawid Malan through the covers for four. He now has 16, putting him level with Hobbs, CB Fry and Graeme Hick.

Gary Wilson hit 10 fours in an excellent 62, dominating the strike and the scoring in an 88-run stand with Ramprakash for the seventh wicket, before he was stumped giving Malan the charge.

Ramprakash was eventually ninth out, hitting high to long-on, after facing 395 balls and striking a six and 26 fours in a more than nine hours at the crease.

Surrey also announced during the day that Younus Khan, the former Pakistan captain, will be joining the club until mid-July and could be in the country in time to play in Friday’s Clydesdale Bank 40 fixture against Glamorgan in Cardiff.