Warwickshire close in on title as Leicestershire left reeling at Edgbaston
Ed Barnard and Sam Hain led a dominant batting display before the ball, leaving Leicestershire 192 runs behind with three wickets down as Warwickshire edge towards a ninth County Championship crown.
Warwickshire moved to the brink of the County Championship title after a day of largely untroubled progress against Leicestershire at Edgbaston, according to Guardian Cricket.
Play was held up by bad light in mid-morning under overcast Birmingham skies, but the interruption did little to disturb the hosts once the action resumed.
Captain Ed Barnard and Sam Hain put together a substantial partnership, batting with control against a Leicestershire attack that could find no way through for long periods.
Barnard eventually fell caught behind for 88, while Hain went on to be the last man out, compiling 142 before Warwickshire's innings closed.
With the ball in hand, Warwickshire wasted little time asserting themselves. Ethan Bamber and Chris Woakes struck in the fading evening light to leave Leicestershire on 55 for three.
The visitors ended the day still 192 runs behind, a deficit that leaves them with a steep task to avoid defeat.
Warwickshire's hopes of a third successive two-day victory were denied only by the early arrival of evening gloom, which brought a premature close to proceedings.
Even so, the position leaves Warwickshire needing little more than a formality on Saturday to be confirmed as champions, their ninth title in the competition's history.
Attention now turns to the final day at Edgbaston, where Warwickshire will look to finish the job against a Leicestershire side already well behind the game.