On the day Surrey were meant to be paraded as the new County Champions it was Warwickshire’s Nick Knight who headlined with his fifth championship hundred of the season. It was also the 29th century of his first-class career and few can have been as courageous as the 133 he made in six hours and twenty minutes, on one leg, against the attack many regard as the best in the country.

The upshot is that Adam Hollioake’s men will now have to await the outcome of next week’s fixtures involving Warwickshire and Kent. Should the midlands county lose or fall short of a high-scoring draw at Old Trafford and the latter fail to beat Somerset at Taunton, the title will be decided with two matches to spare. If not, then it is on to the Rose Bowl and Hampshire.

Of course, had Surrey not lost to the ‘Brummies’ at the AMP Oval last month, it would all be cut and dried. But since suffering defeats in their opening two encounters, Warwickshire, like Knight, have had a resurgent summer and in spite of their two-year absence from the top flight they are now the one team, other than the Oval outfit, whom championship opponents respect the most.

Labelled a one-day specialist, Nick Knight proved he was anything but yesterday. Restricted by an injured hip, even the Warwickshire physio did not believe his player was up to batting all day. He originally booked him in for a scan at 1.00pm, then switched the appointment to 4.30pm and in the end had to cancel when the left-hander endured all but two overs of the day’s play.

Knight was also kept on his feet for longer than he would have wanted at lunch, when he was presented with a local law firm’s cricketer of the month award for August. But his focus barely wavered - he gave just one clear-cut chance, just before tea, to backward short-leg off the bowling of Salisbury - and if the England selectors truly believe he cannot cut the mustard in the longer form of the game, perhaps they should get out and watch more championship cricket.

This season, in ten appearances, the former Essex man has made 1,520 runs at an average of ninety-five. After passing like ships in the night in the first innings, he shared the same stage as Jim Troughton for 44 overs second time around as the fourth-wicket pair added 109 runs. Starting the day 45 runs adrift of making the visitors bat again, Troughton immediately cover drove Martin Bicknell for four, but then followed his partner’s unadventurous lead.

Only when the newcomer hooked Jimmy Ormond for six to reach his half-century in 110 balls did the game become a spectacle once more. Four overs later Troughton passed a thousand runs for the season and brought up the hundred partnership in 160 minutes with one blow, through the covers, off Ormond. But when he played back to the last ball of Ian Salisbury’s third over, the 23-year-old was palpably leg before.

When Shaun Pollock dabbed a low catch to forward short leg on the stroke of lunch the visitors looked back in business. Warwickshire, with five wickets down, dined just 26 runs ahead. Salisbury feasted on a six over spell of one for five and with Saqlain Mushtaq getting the ball to turn it looked nailed on that the home side would be spun out by tea and Surrey would end the day by clubbing the winning runs. But cricket is rarely that straightforward.

It took two hours to prize out Dougie Brown - who gave Saqlain his fiftieth wicket in this season’s championship - Tony Frost and Ashley Giles and when the England spinner went for a run-a-ball 25 eleven overs into the final session, one school of thought was that it would be in Warwickshire’s interests to set the visitors 178 off a minimum of 23 overs and hope for lightning to strike twice.

However, that was as fanciful as Ian Ward taking a first-class wicket when he became the ninth bowler used by Adam Hollioake. But that is just what happened when a weary Nick Knight edged his 302nd delivery on to off stump. Ten minutes later it was handshakes all round as both sides accepted the draw.

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