Graham Thorpe survived a 16-over session at the end of the last day as Surrey escaped with a draw with Worcestershire in the Frizzell County Championship at New Road on Saturday.

After the loss of five hours because of persistent rain the England left-hander resumed at 5pm and earned four points for his beleaguered team by batting to the close for an unbeaten 26.

The runs he scored were incidental to his anchor role as hard-pressed Surrey avoided a possible innings defeat by losing only two wickets to before closing 58 behind at 187-8.

Rain had the final say at Beckenham as 66 overs were lost on the final day, and Warwickshire had to settle for a Frizzell County Championship draw against Kent.

The visitors dominated and were rewarded with 12 points to help them retain their position at the top of the Division One table while Kent, having begun the game in second position, dropped to third.

The hosts had to follow on 205 runs behind, but opening batsmen David Fulton and Michael Carberry showed a little more application for 17 overs to reach 23 before a steady downpour brought an end to proceedings.

Only 42 minutes and 14 overs were possible on the fourth day of the Frizzell County Championship match between Hampshire and Yorkshire at the Rose Bowl but it was long enough for the hosts to gain a valuable batting bonus point in a drawn Second Division game.

At the fall of the eighth wicket, Hampshire were 259 in their first innings and, as more rain descended, the players did not reappear after tea.

Yorkshire, winning the toss, made 395 all out with Australian opening batsman Phil Jaques making a career-best 243.

Hampshire resumed on the final day at 202-6, still requiring another 44 to avoid the follow on.

Yorkshire captain Matthew Wood began with his spin bowlers, Richard Dawson and Andy Gray, in an effort to break the seventh wicket partnership between Nic Pothas and Shaun Udal.

But Pothas and Udal soon made a mockery of the follow-on target of 246 with the latter lifting Gray over mid-wicket for six and then straight-driving Dawson for another maximum as Hampshire reached the 250 mark in the 75th over.

The matches at Taunton, between Somerset and Leicestershire, and at Derby between Derbyshire and Essex, were both abandoned as draws.