While the fate of the Scarborough pitch remained the main topic of conversation among the 4,000 fans yesterday, Surrey merely showed contempt for Yorkshire as they moved relentless towards the substantial win which will virtually guarantee that they remain county champions.

As if they wished to show they did not mind the pitch being prepared to suit pace rather than spin they mowed through Yorkshire with their fast bowlers until Alex Tudor limped off with an attack of cramp.

Yorkshire at that stage were 156 for eight and only then did Surrey call up spin wizard Saqlain Mushtaq who grabbed the last two wickets with his first seven balls.

Bowled out for 158, Yorkshire trailed by 198 on the first innings but so confident were Surrey that they did not enforce the follow-on, deciding instead to build up a massive lead.

Having failed to prevent Surrey's last two wickets adding a further 26 runs in the morning, Yorkshire had the wind knocked out of their sails in the most dramatic manner imaginable as Simon Widdup was lbw to Alex Tudor's first ball of the innings and Anthony McGrath edged the second to wicket keeper Jon Batty.

Darren Lehmann emerged to survive the hat-trick ball but it became four for three off the first ten deliveries as Vic Craven's off-stump was knocked back by a yorker from Ben Hollioake.

Lehmann continued for a while but he soon wafted outside off-stump at Tudor for Batty to hold the catch, only for umpire Barry Dudleston to signal no-ball.

The Australian also executed some stunning shots and with David Byas giving useful assistance 69 were added in 17 overs before Byas played Ben Hollioake off bat and pad to Nadeem Shahid at short leg.

Yorkshire were almost completely reliant on Lehmann who dashed to his fifth consecutive half century and his 11th of the season but when he had reached 66 he was run out by Gavin Hamilton, having faced 74 balls with seven boundaries.

Hamilton pushed Ben Hollioake out to cover and set off for a run before changing his mind and Lehmann could not beat Ian Ward's athletic pick up and throw.

Simon Guy, beaten four consecutive times by Tudor was quickly put out of his misery, and when Chris Silverwood patted back a gentle catch to Ben Hollioake Yorkshire were 130 for eight. When Saqlain came on, Hamilton was completely beaten by the flight of his second ball and at the beginning of his next over Greg Lambert gave a close-in catch to Adam Hollioake.

Surrey commenced their second innings and Ward had not scored when he followed a ball from Silverwood and edged a catch to Guy. Shahid shouldered arms to be bowled by Hamilton's inswinger and it would have been 39 for three if Craven had not dropped the simplest of catches when Adam Hollioake drove Matthew Hoggard straight to him.

Bad light ended play for the day on 53 for two with 22 overs remaining, Surrey's lead having increased to 251.

Pitch liaison officer Mike Denness was joined by colleague Alan Fordham at North Marine Road yesterday.

If, as seems likely, they decide that the pitch preparation was poor then Yorkshire could be docked eight points