England opener Emilio Gay scored 141 runs as Durham took control of the first day of their County Championship match against Lancashire, finishing the day at 355-5. This was Gay's fourth century in just 10 Championship innings this season and showed his team's commitment to playing aggressively, even after securing the Division Two title. His partnership with Ben McKinney, who scored 71 and reached 1,000 first-class runs for the season, was a strong start. Gay then added 168 runs with Mayank Agarwal before being caught at second slip off Ben Walkden when Durham were just eight runs short of a second batting point. Lancashire's bowlers faced a tough session, though they managed to take three wickets in the evening. However, they were frustrated by dropping four catches, all off Durham's leading scorers. The direction of the day was clear by lunchtime when Lancashire were 112-1, with McKinney unbeaten on 64. Alex Lees was caught behind off Tom Bailey for three in the third over of the morning, but McKinney and Gay had built an unbroken 102-run partnership by the first interval, hitting 17 boundary fours on a pitch that supported batting. The afternoon started poorly for Durham when McKinney, who had already given two tough chances before reaching 50, played a flat-footed drive to a ball from Bailey and was caught behind by Matty Hurst for 71. That wicket ended a 114-run stand for the second wicket, but as was the case in the morning session, an early loss was followed by Durham's dominance. Gay was joined by India's Mayank Agarwal, who made an immediate impact by pulling Mitch Stanley for a four and a six off consecutive balls. Gay reached his century off 156 balls, hitting a boundary through midwicket for his 14th four. Agarwal reached his half-century off 101 balls just before tea, by which time Durham were 247-2 and the third-wicket pair had nearly doubled the score, putting on 123 runs. The batters continued to bat calmly in the evening session, and it was a surprise when Gay guided Walkden straight to Harris. That wicket began a fine spell for Lancashire, whose left-arm spinner Noman Ali took the next two wickets. Umpire Hassan Adnan ruled that Colin Ackermann had edged a catch to Hurst on six, but there was no doubt about the one to Josh Bohannon at cover that led to Agarwal's departure for 66. Those wickets left Durham on 306-5, but Ollie Robinson and Kasey Aldridge ensured their side reached a third bonus point at the close. Noman finished the day with figures of 2-110.