Matt Prior the sole sign of Sussex's superiority over Middlesex

This is top v bottom, but it has felt nothing of the sort. Middlesex might have begun the game 70 points behind Sussex in Division Two, but they will have slept through election night the happier of the two sides. Matt Prior, whose century staved off a Sussex calamity first time around, might have to do it again. He ended the second day unbeaten on 48. When England's captain is looking on from first slip there are worse times to make runs. The pitch did ease slightly yesterday on a day of unbroken sunshine. On the first day apparently, as Prior struck an unbeaten 123 out of Sussex's 217, it might have been designed as an election poster for Caroline Lucas, who had ambitions to become the first Green MP a mile or so down the road in Brighton. By yesterday, it was much creamier, the vaguest hint of Liberal Democrat. Middlesex took advantage, gathering a first-innings lead of 79, an enterprising tone set by Neil Dexter's 80 in two-and-a-half hours. He fell lbw to Robin Martin-Jenkins and, presumably in the belief that he had hit it, took so long to trail from the field that you could have played a Twenty20 match in the meantime. Gareth Berg's 60 from 61 balls strengthened Middlesex's hand. Monty Panesar had blocked up an end with great success, but with the new ball approaching Berg timed his assault intelligently, taking 22 from an over. Sussex, courageously, kept Panesar on and in his next over he had Berg lbw, sweeping. It was good cricket by both sides and did not need Prior's gratuitous send-off. After lunch, some Sussex members in the bar took to multi-tasking: watching Berg's strike-out, following England's Twenty20 victory on the TV and discussing the election. "There we are, we've solved the world's problems in 20 minutes," exclaimed one Sussex member as he left the bar. "I didn't agree with a single word he said," said one of those left the minute he was out of earshot. Solving Middlesex's problems will also take longer than 20 minutes, but they are a young and enthusiastic side. They took three wickets with the new ball after tea. Tim Murtagh had Michael Thornely lbw and removed Joe Gatting at slip for a duck; Iain O'Brien bowled Murray Goodwin, who is not quite the daunting batsman of old.