LANCASHIRE’S batsmen are charged with keeping their LV= County Championship Division Two title hopes alive during today’s final day against Surrey at Emirates Old Trafford.

Steven Croft’s side endured another difficult day against the league leaders, five points clear ahead of the season’s penultimate fixture, and were set a virtually impossible 492 to win deep into yesterday’s third evening session.

They closed on 22-0 from seven overs through Bolton openers Karl Brown and Haseeb Hameed.

A Surrey win will secure them the title, while a draw would mean an eight-point gap going into next week’s final round of matches.

Lancashire, replying to a first-innings 480, slipped from 141-5 overnight to 207-9 as they lost their seventh, eighth and ninth wickets in nine balls to teenage star Sam Curran and veteran off-spinner Gareth Batty.

An entertaining tenth-wicket stand of 65 in 15 overs between Jimmy Anderson and Simon Kerrigan gave the hosts something to shout about.

Anderson hit seven fours and a six over mid-wicket in 42 off 55 balls, while Kerrigan contributed a 42-ball 23 as Lancashire secured a second batting bonus point for 272.

Seventeen-year-old left-arm seamer Curran, skipping school to play, finished with a career best 5-67 from 19 overs, including Jordan Clark trapped lbw and Tom Bailey bowled with successive deliveries at the start of the 56th over.

Sam’s older brother Tom finished the Lancashire innings by bowling Anderson, with a deficit of 208 on the stroke of lunch.

Surrey opted not to enforce the follow-on, instead batting positively either side of tea on the way to 283-7 declared from 54.1 overs.

Sri Lanka legend Kumar Sangakkara led the way with a superb 118 off 134 balls, although the left-hander was one of four wickets for Croft’s off-spin in pursuit of quick runs.

Croft took three wickets in four overs and finished with 4-35 from 7.1.

He had Steven Davies caught at short cover, Sam Curran caught at slip and Sangakkara caught and bowled, leaving the score at 243-6 in the 49th over.

At that stage, the lead was 451 with a little over 15 overs remaining in the day. He later bowled Tom Curran immediately before the declaration.

Bailey, Kerrigan and Arron Lilley were the other wicket-takers for Lancashire, who have struggled since last month’s T20 Blast success.