MIDDLESEX maintained their LV= County Championship push by banking 23 Division Two points after wrapping up a seven-wicket win over Derbyshire at Lord's.
With such a small target ahead of them, Middlesex set out on the final morning with forceful intent, only to pay the price by losing in-form openers Sam Robson and Scott Newman in the space of six overs.Chasing only 91 for their sixth win of the campaign on the final day, Middlesex suffered three early scares before marching home to victory with 74 overs to spare, courtesy of an unbroken fourth-wicket stand of 66 between Chris Rogers and Neil Dexter.Both fell to the swing bowling of Tony Palladino who, with his third ball of the day, had Robson (one) caught in the gully by Wayne Madsen off a miscued back-foot force.With his score on nine, left-handed Newman then padded up to a Palladino in-swinger to go leg before without playing a stroke for the second time in the match to make it 18-2. The home demise continue when Dawid Malan, fresh from a career-best 143 in the first innings, aimed a back-foot force against a lifting delivery from Tim Groenewald only to edge a catch through to the wicketkeeper Luke Sutton.
Derbyshire's former captain Rogers then teamed up with his new Middlesex skipper Dexter to ease tension among a smattering of home supporters.
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