Warwickshire 60 and 189 for 4 (Hain 66*, Mousley 58) lead Middlesex 199 by 50 runs
Middlesex's first-day charge towards victory over Warwickshire was slowed first by stubborn batting and then by bad weather on the second day of their LV=Insurance County Championship match at Edgbaston.
After chaos came calm as the frenetic opening day of 312 runs for 23 wickets was followed by a soporific second which delivered 136 for three from 56.3 overs before rain wiped out the last session.
Warwickshire, having been bowled out for 60 on the first morning, closed the second day on 189 for four in their second innings, leading by 50, after Sam Hain (66 not out, 174 balls) and Dan Mousley (58, 151) dug in to add 110 in 45 overs.
Middlesex remain very strongly placed but the home side have clawed their way back into the game. If Warwickshire can bat deep and set a target of around 250 they will scent a remarkable victory, though the absence of injured leading wicket-taker Chris Rushworth (42 wickets at 18.26 this season) means the pendulum is still massively in Middlesex's favour.
After Warwickshire resumed on 53 for two, 86 behind, it was immediately clear that the pitch is no minefield. Their implosion for 60 first time round was due partly to good bowling in helpful conditions but also to careless batting.
There was nothing careless about Hain's work as he knuckled down diligently much as he did as an 18-year-old debutant against Middlesex at Edgbaston in 2014 when he scored 42 in 137 minutes.
Nine years on, he lost only one partner in the morning session when Rob Yates (30, 62 balls) edged a lovely away-cutter from Ethan Bamber to wicketkeeper John Simpson. That was the 872nd victim of Simpson's excellent career but he was kept waiting for number 873 as Hain and Mousley displayed the discipline that Warwickshire's batters had lacked the previous day.
Defending resolutely and leaving astutely, they reached their half-centuries (Hain 131 balls, Mousley 122) in successive overs and it was a surprise when they were parted. Mousley pulled a short ball from Tom Helm straight into the hands of Ryan Higgins at deep mid-wicket and thumped his bat hard into his pad in frustration as he headed towards the pavilion instead of towards the maiden century that beckoned.
Jake Bethell joined the implacable Hain for seven overs until bad light intervened and then rained arrived to end play with 39.3 overs unbowled, nine seagulls on the covers and Simpson still thirsting for his 873rd victim which will put him just 350 behind Middlesex's all-time record snaffler John Murray (1,223).
