Middlesex batsman Stevie Eskinazi admits their County Championship Division Two clash with Durham has been ‘really interesting’.

The visitors closed day two on 255-2 for a lead of 66, after dismissing Durham for 310 in reply to their below-par first innings total of 121.

Eskinazi put on a 159-run stand with Nick Gubbins, only to fall four runs short of a century, but the Middlesex opener remains unbeaten on 90 alongside captain Dawid Malan (31 not out).

And Eskinazi was pleased with the Middlesex fightback, saying: “It has been really interesting actually. If you told us at 11.30am on Monday that we would be in this position we would have bitten your hand off.

“It was great that Gubbo [Nick Gubbins] and I could put our hands up in the last innings of the season when the team needed it, but there’s a lot of hard work to do to get us back in the driving seat in this game.

“I guess it was personally disappointing [missing out on a century], but that stuff fades away pretty quickly when you look at the position that the team is in.

“It would have been nice to pass that milestone at least once this year, but you have to be realistic about your goals and put sides in good positions. A couple of those 90s have been in tough situations when the team has needed it and that’s essentially the way I look to play my cricket.”

Tim Murtgah (4-56) and Ethan Bamber (3-78) were the pick of the Middlesex bowling after Gareth Harte (112) top scored for Durham and with two days still to play, both sides will have hopes of ending on a winning note.