A creditable performance in the field by Essex gave them a slender first innings lead of 24, although they received some unwelcome news late in the day that Danish Kaneria, who managed only five overs yesterday, had broken his spinning finger.

Kaneria sustained the injury trying to take a return catch from Ben Smith, and in his absence, Worcestershire got much closer to Essex's total than they might otherwise have done.

Unusually, as many as six Essex bowlers claimed wickets, Grant Flower capturing his first of the season after being pressed into service because of Kaneria's injury. Smith, who was reprieved by the Pakistani just after reaching a positive fifty off 71 balls, was the only batsman to be dropped as Essex took a series of fine catches. Jason Gallian and Flower held sharp chances in the slips, and both Ryan ten Doeschate and Varun Chopra underlined what good hands they possess with a brace of catches apiece.

The Holland all-rounder, who finished on 94 not out from 102 balls in the morning, did particularly well to cling onto a hard-hit drive at short extra cover to remove Steven Davies.

Smith held the innings together after the top three had perished cheaply. If Stephen Moore was out to a loose drive, Vikram Solanki was prized out by a beauty from David Masters that drew him forward and left him late to brush the edge. Daryl Mitchell fell to Kaneria's very first ball, neatly caught at silly point off a leading edge.

Graeme Hick gave Smith sensible support in a fourth-wicket stand of 57 in just over an hour but he would have been disappointed with his dismissal, cutting straight to backward point. Smith, like Mitchell on the stroke of lunch, was out to the last ball of a session when he turned James Middlebrook straight to Chopra at short leg.

That left Worcestershire on 167-6, and in danger of conceding a significant first-innings lead. However, Gareth Batty chose a good time to score what was only his second fifty of the season, reaching it in the grand manner with a straight six off Graham Napier.

Batty also struck Masters for a leg side six, and got useful support from Gareth Andrew in an eighth-wicket alliance of 48. Batty was last out for 60 from 103 balls when James Foster held a brilliant diving catch.

Scoreboard

Essex: First Innings (overnight 269-9)
R N ten Doeschate not out 94
Danish Kaneria c Davies b Ali 16
Extras (lb 5, w 4, nb 4) 13
Total (78.2 overs) 282

Fall of wickets: 1-3, 2-3, 3-24, 4-138, 5-138, 6-172, 7-188, 8-208, 9-238.

Bowling: Ali 22.2-5-83-6; Mason 1-1-0-0; Arif 26-7-84-4; Andrew 11-1-52-0; Batty 11-0-51-0; Mitchell 7-3-7-0.

Second Innings
J E R Gallian not out 7
V Chopra not out 2
Extras (w 1) 1
Total (no wkt) 10

Bowling: Kabir Ali 2-0-4-0; Arif 2-0-6-0.

Worcestershire: First Innings
D K H Mitchell c Ten Doeschate b Kaneria 20
S C Moore c Gallian b Napier 10
*V S Solanki c Foster b Masters 0
B F Smith c Chopra b Middlebrook 74
G A Hick c Chopra b Wright 34
S M Davies c Ten Doeschate b Middlebrook 10
G J Batty c Foster b Middlebrook 60
Kabir Ali c G W Flower b Napier 9
G M Andrew b G W Flower 21
M S Mason b Masters 6
Imran Arif not out 4
Extras (lb 5, w 1, nb 4) 10
Total (83.1 overs) 258

Fall of wickets: 1-16, 2-17, 3-60, 4-117, 5-146, 6-167, 7-182, 8-230, 9-240.

Bowling: Masters 17.5-7-50-2; Napier 19-5-41-2; Wright 12-2-59-1; Ten Doeschate 8-2-27-0; Kaneria 5-1-10-1; Middlebrook 17.2-5-56-3; G W Flower 4-1-10-1.

Umpires: N L Bainton and M A Gough.