Will Smith, who spent last winter studying sports writing and broadcasting, wrote his own headlines yesterday when he became only the seventh Durham batsman to score a double century in their 17 seasons of County Championship cricket. Smith, who had gone in to bat at 5.35 on Wednesday afternoon, was still there 45 hours later, having scored an undefeated 201 to join a select band of two Englishmen (John Morris and Gordon Muchall) and four Australians (Martin Love, who did it twice, Marcus North, Michael di Venuto and Michael Hussey) in Durham's Two Hundred Club.

He had faced 369 balls, blocking the good ones and hitting the bad ones for 22 fours, in more than eight hours of exemplary application and intense concentration. He offered just one fleeting chance to James Ormond at second slip off Jade Dernbach when he had made 166.

His monumental performance just failed to give Durham a fifth batting point, which could be important in such a tight title race, but gave them a first-innings lead of 190 that appeared ominous for a beleaguered Surrey side.

To their credit, however, they came out fighting. Scott Newman, who had made 113 in the frst innings, defied a knee injury to hit 67 off 88 balls and, after Stewart Walters and Chris Murtagh had fallen to the pace of Callum Thorp and Stephen Harmison, Jonathan Batty and Usman Afzaal all but cleared the arrears with a fourth-wicket stand of 59 in only 11 overs.

Durham had started the day 39 ahead with seven wickets in hand but Phil Mustard was out in the third over without adding to his overnight 62. He had reined in his attacking instincts in joining Smith in a sixth-wicket partnership of 134 but could not resist slashing at James Ormond and was caught behind.

That gave Ormond his fourth wicket in an innings for the first time in three years but the former England fast bowler could not add to his haul as Wiseman and Plunkett supported Smith in successive stands of 66 and 54.

Durham were well on course for a victory that would renew their championship challenge, but they had reckoned without Newman who had been off the field with his knee strapped up but emerged to hit two sixes and eight fours and leave Plunkett and Steve Harmison licking their wounds.

Surrey: First Innings 220 (S A Newman 113; B W Harmison 4 for 27)

Second Innings

S A Newman c Stoneman b Wiseman 67
S J Walters c S J Harmison b Thorp 33
C P Murtagh c Thorp b S J Harmison 12
*J N Batty not out 31
U Afzaal not out 27

Extras (b 1, lb 10, nb 4) 15

Total (3 wkts, 43 overs) 185

Fall of wickets: 1-96, 2-112, 3-126.

Bowling: S J Harmison 13-1-73-1; Thorp 13-4-36-1; Plunkett 2-0-29-0; Wiseman 9-1-19-1; B W Harmison 6-2-17-0.

Durham: First Innings (overnight 259-5)

W R Smith not out 201
P Mustard c Batty b Ormond 62
P J Wiseman c Murtagh b Dernbach 34
L E Plunkett c Hussain b Schofield 28
C D Thorp b Hussain 6
S J Harmison c Murtagh b Hussain 2

Extras (b 6, lb 10, w 1, nb 6) 23

Total (135.3 overs)410

Fall of wickets: 1-15, 2-15, 3-21, 4-73, 5-128, 6-262, 7-328, 8-382, 9-396.

Bowling: Dernbach 28-5-76-2; Ormond 28-7-90-4; Hussain 32.3-7-82-3; Jordan 19-5-60-0; Schofield 23-2-69-1; Afzaal 2-0-3-0; Walters 3-0-14-0.

Umpires: M J Harris and N J Llong.