JONATHAN BATTY, the beleaguered Surrey captain, looked awfully like the boy on the burning deck last night as his side disintegrated around him. He had been powerless to prevent Brad Hogg from scoring a career-best 158 to lift Warwickshire to a mocking total of 546 and could then do no more than put a brave face on the deepening crisis as his side’s batting collapsed abysmally.

To make matters worse, Saqlain Mushtaq, the Pakistan off spinner, who had been the only real threat to Warwickshire, limped off yesterday without bowling a ball. He had aggravated a knee injury, suffered in pre-season training, in the field and a visit to a specialist for scans revealed that he may not play again for four weeks.

In his absence, Surrey, who had bowled poorly on the first day when Warwickshire reached 358 for six, went from bad to worse as Hogg and Ashley Giles, playing his first game since the third Test in the West Indies, took their partnership to 191 — Warwickshire’s highest for the seventh wicket against Surrey.

Hogg, the all-rounder who has just lost his place in the Australia squad, scorched to his first century since he scored two in 1996 for Western Australia. He had made 158, with a six and 19 fours, when he was caught behind off Martin Bicknell.

Giles had supported him well, scoring 70 off 171 balls, with six fours, when he was caught at slip off Ian Salisbury, and there was still some strong-arm stuff from Neil Carter to endure before Surrey were able to hide their embarrassment in the pavilion.

They were not able to hide for long. Mark Butcher, who had made a duck in the totesport League on his first appearance since the West Indies tour, soon confirmed that rest is not as good as match practice for England batsmen by getting another duck, caught at short leg off Carter.

Scott Newman made his usual positive start before driving extravagantly at a wide ball from Dewald Pretorius, Mark Ramprakash was caught at second slip off Carter and Graham Thorpe would have been out for 13 in Giles’s first over if Tony Frost had been able to take the catch.

Thorpe did go on to make 42 before he was caught behind, sweeping at Mark Wagh, but Adam Hollioake gave Wagh a return catch three balls later and it was left to Batty — without a win in his first seven games as captain — to show the commitment he is clearly not getting from some of his players.

Azhar Mahmood helped him to put on 35 before he was leg-before to Hogg and Bicknell had made 37 out of 50 for the seventh wicket when he was leg-before to Giles. Batty was left hanging on gallantly at the close, with 37 not out off 154 balls.