Nottinghamshire put themselves in the box seat to end Surrey's three-year stint as County champions with a nail-biting win at The Oval today (September 18).
After ending day three of the top-of-the-table clash on 66-0, Surrey needed another 249 to beat Nottinghamshire at the start of day four. With one round left in the Championship, and the two sides separated by a single point going into the fixture, whoever came out on top at the end of the game would be in prime position to take the title.
Having taken three wickets in Surrey's first innings, Josh Tongue got the ball rolling for Notts early in the morning session when he dismissed Rory Burns for 45, pinning him lbw. From there, Surrey lost wickets at regular intervals, with Brett Hutton and Lyndon James chipping in to break through the middle-order before Dan Lawrence reached a counter-attacking half-century within 70 runs of their target with four wickets in hand.
Match 111, Surrey vs Nottinghamshire
vs
- Ball by ball Over
Josh Tongue leads Nottinghamshire to victory
After Lawrence was trapped lbw by Pennington, however, Tongue took care of the tail with a fiery spell after the Tea break in which he reached speeds above 92mph.
He first dismissed England teammate Gus Atkinson, and then Matt Fisher – who faced four balls from Tongue the first of which produced a close lbw shout, before a rapid bouncer preceded another full delivery in front of his stumps – for a duck. That wicket left Nottinghamshire one away from an historic victory, which would be the first for a visiting Championship side at The Oval since 2023.
Despite Tom Lawes standing firm for 33 in resistance to Tongue's onslaught, he was caught on the extra-cover boundary with Surrey still 21 runs away from their target. That wicket also completed Tongue's five-for, his third five-wicket-haul this season.
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE WIN AT THE KIA OVAL!
— Rothesay County Championship (@CountyChamp) September 18, 2025
Josh Tongue takes his fifth wicket of the innings and moves Nottinghamshire 15 points clear at the top. pic.twitter.com/uW03ciYirV
The result means Nottinghamshire will take a 15-point advantage over the defending champions going into the final round, in which they will play Warwickshire. Surrey will face Hampshire at Utilita Bowl, needing a win to stand any chance of overhauling Nottinghamshire's advantage. Having won the Championship for three consecutive years, bringing an end to that dominant run would see Nottinghamshire win the competition for the first time since 2010.
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