RUNS continued to flow on a murky morning at Taunton as Somerset declared on 400 for nine then Durham swiftly wiped out the deficit of 16 and progressed to 59 for one at lunch.

Michael Di Venuto was the man out after launching the innings by pulling the first ball he faced for six off Jamie Overton, whose first over cost 11 runs.

He then discovered that by pitching the ball up and swinging it he could cause problems for Di Venuto, who appeared to lose sight of a few balls. It was no surprise when he edged one to first slip to depart for 26.

Overton continued to pose problems in an excellent seven-over spell before making way for his twin, Craig, but Will Smith reached 20 at the break and Mark Stoneman nine.

Somerset added 43 in 30 minutes before declaring as soon as they had secured the fifth batting point.

They might have felt that had they gone on to build a lead of 50-plus Durham might have concentrated on batting for a draw, or perhaps they felt their bowlers could exploit the conditions before the murk burnt off.

They also might have batted on had Peter Trego not been the man out and it was Jamie Harrison who halted his charge after he had advanced from his overnight 67 to 89.

Trego had been driving strongly but when Harrison shortened his length a fraction the batsman stayed on the crease and a superb ball nipped between bat and pad to hit leg and middle.

Harrison finished with the very commendable figures of four for 112.