Gutsy Josh Blake led Surrey to a tense victory over Yorkshire which has eased - but not ended - their relegation worries.

They started the match just three points above the drop zone in Rothesay County Championship Division One and despite conceding a lead of 102 in a low scoring match still crept home by one wicket, pushing them two places up the table.

Playing through a broken finger suffered last month, Blake's unbeaten 43 was the crucial innings which saw Surrey to victory in a desperately exciting and close finish, where defeat had potentially dire consequences for both sides.

Yorkshire had been bowled out for 185 early on the second day, rain shortening the first, but in humid conditions the ball swung generously throughout. Allied with seam movement, it made batting appear almost impossible at times.

Surrey were shot out for 83 in reply - they have now taken just four out of the last 30 available batting bonus points - with England's Ollie Pope making the top score of 21.

But in turn, they struck back to dismiss the visitors in their second innings for 82, the hero being former Yorkshire seamer Matthew Fisher as he claimed six for 25 in nine overs. Tom Lawes added two, giving him six in the match.

Surrey were 27 without loss when bad light closed in, ending a day in which 23 wickets had fallen, the most in a single day’s play at the ground since 1953.

Batting was marginally easier on the third and final day, but when the home side slid to 81 for five by lunch, they were the clear underdogs.

But Blake, playing only his seventh first-class match since joining the club in 2022, and likely to move elsewhere to seek greater chances at the end of the season, calmly held one end together without worrying about being beaten regularly.

He found an excellent partner in Fisher (33) as the pair put on 55 for the eighth wicket, but 15 were still needed when Fisher departed.

Indian import Auqib Nabi brought victory dramatically closer by smashing a huge six, leaving just two required, only to sky a catch off the next ball.

But last man Dan Worrall somehow squeezed a boundary, leaving Blake to lead the players off unbeaten on 43 to thunderous applause, having secured only the second victory in 11 outings of an increasingly fraught campaign.

His vigil, over 275 minutes, had taken 183 balls, longer than the whole of Surrey's first innings and Yorkshire's second.

Blake said: “It’s a huge win. We’ve had a few challenging weeks coming into this game but we’ve stayed positive and trained hard.

“I really enjoyed that partnership with Matt Fisher. He was a very calming influence and took a lot of the pressure off me.

“It’s been a great week, actually, and as someone who has been involved at Surrey for a while now it was brilliant to be out there and to contribute to a victory like that.”

To be certain of avoiding the drop in a season which saw them tipped to regain the title from Nottinghamshire, Surrey probably need to win one of their last three games.

Their remaining Rothesay County Championship Division One matches are away to Sussex at Hove, which began on Tuesday; Glamorgan (Kia Oval, September 15); and Somerset (Taunton, September 24).

By Richard Spiller