[12] Warwickshire's tenth-wicket partnership denied Somerset their first victory of the season, holding out for 78 minutes in a match that was somewhat overshadowed by a series of questionable umpiring decisions.
[19] Durham's third win in five games, this time against Surrey,[20] extended their Championship lead to 13.5 points over nearest rivals Middlesex.
[29] The match between fellow strugglers Derbyshire and Surrey ended in a high-scoring draw,[30] while Nottinghamshire fell four wickets short of defeating early title contenders Sussex.
[39] Somerset achieved their first win of the season away at fellow relegation candidates Derbyshire,[40] while Surrey managed a fourth successive draw, this time against title contenders Yorkshire.
[41] A draw for Sussex against Nottinghamshire was enough to give them second place in the table, eight points behind Yorkshire, and 8.5 ahead of Durham, at the halfway stage of the season.
[44] Middlesex's title ambitions were dented by a loss to Warwickshire on a turning pitch at Uxbridge,[45] while an unbeaten century from Ricky Ponting in his final first-class innings was enough to save Surrey from a defeat against Nottinghamshire.
[49] Yorkshire topped the table at the end of July, seven points clear of, and with a game in hand over, second-placed Sussex.
[51] Sussex lost their second consecutive Championship game, this time against relegation-battling Derbyshire, who took their first win of the season, and their first victory at Hove for seventeen years.
[61] The gap between the two leading sides was closed considerably when Durham defeated Yorkshire by seven wickets, in what was the first-placed county's first loss since their opening fixture of the season.
[62] Surrey's first win of the season, against relegation rivals Derbyshire, allowed them to move above their opponents in the table, while remaining adrift of both Somerset and Nottinghamshire.
[63] However, four days later, Surrey fell to their fourth defeat of the season, against Middlesex, in a match in which off-spinner Ollie Rayner took fifteen wickets.
[64] A comprehensive victory against Sussex within three days put Durham into the lead of the Championship, 14.5 points ahead of Yorkshire, with three games apiece to be played.
[66] A washout on the final day of their game denied Nottinghamshire a chance to win against Warwickshire, leaving the 2010 champions on the cusp of the relegation battle.
[72] Durham clinched the County Championship on 19 September by winning their match against Nottinghamshire by eight wickets,[73] giving them an unassailable 48.5 point lead over Yorkshire,[74] who, the following day, completed an 80 run victory against Middlesex to secure second place in the table.
[76] The following week, the remaining relegation spot was taken by Derbyshire, who were also condemned to Division Two by losing a match to Warwickshire—on this occasion by an innings, after being bowled out for 103 and 120.
[77] With the prospect for relegation for both counties removed, Nottinghamshire and Somerset drew their match at Trent Bridge,[78] while the game between Surrey and Yorkshire, whose fates had already been decided the previous week, ended as a high-scoring draw.
[79] Sussex won their final match, against champions-elect Durham, to clinch third in the standings,[80] leaving Warwickshire and Middlesex in fourth and fifth, respectively, while Somerset and Nottinghamshire ended level on points, with the former taking sixth place, with three wins to the latter's two.
[81] The opening round of games, which included a contest between the two counties relegated from Division One (Lancashire and Worcestershire), ended with all four matches drawn.
[82] The following week, Northamptonshire subjected Essex to an innings defeat, bowling the visitors out for just 183 and 207, in a match that was completed within three days.
[85] Worcestershire fell to a second successive defeat, this time against Hampshire, who completed an innings victory, their first win of the season, after rain thwarted their chances against Leicestershire in the first round of games.
[86] Northamptonshire took a maximum 24 points in their game against Gloucestershire after claiming a seven-wicket win,[87] while the match between Lancashire and Kent at Old Trafford culminated in a rain-affected draw.
[91] Northamptonshire took their third consecutive victory of the season when they defeated Kent, with their overseas signing Trent Copeland taking ten wickets in the match.
[94] There were draws in the matches between Gloucestershire and Hampshire, which saw the hosts resort to using four substitute fielders at one point,[95] and Worcestershire and Leicestershire, in which a day's worth of play was lost due to rain.
[99] Glamorgan's hopes of victory at Grace Road, after making Leicestershire follow on, were eliminated when less than an hour's play was possible on day four of the match.
[100] Worcestershire took a second consecutive victory when they defeated Gloucestershire by ten wickets,[101] while the match between Essex and Kent, in which the third day's play was lost to rain, was drawn.
[104] At the end of May, Northamptonshire, who were unbeaten after five matches, still led the table, while Worcestershire and Essex, who had played two more games each than their closest rivals, were second and third, respectively.
[105] The remaining games begun before the end of May—the contests between Kent and Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Hampshire, and Lancashire and Gloucestershire—were all curtailed at some point by poor weather, and all finished as draws.
[115] In the final round of games in June, Lancashire won against their main rivals Northamptonshire inside two days,[116] while Worcestershire defeated Glamorgan by eight wickets,[117] Leicestershire, yet to win a Championship match in 2013, were beaten by Essex in a closely fought contest.
[120] Lancashire's victory against title rivals Northamptonshire at Northampton promoted the visitors to the top spot in the Division Two standings, ahead of their hosts for that game.