India's ace leg spinner Anil Kumble snared eight wickets in the second innings to spin Surrey to a seven-wicket victory against Northamptonshire in a county Division Two match at the Oval in London on Saturday.

Kumble's 8 for 100, his best figures in county cricket, gave the Division Two leaders their seventh County Championship win of the season.

The 35-year-old, who took just one wicket in his previous outing for Surrey, proved too good for his former colleagues as he ran through their batting, and finished with match figures of 11 for 183.

But Surrey were made to wait until well inside the final hour for their win as Matthew Nicholson (53 not out) and David Wigley (28) put on 78 runs for the ninth wicket.

Kumble, however, wrapped up the innings, when the match looked like heading for a draw by claiming the final two wickets. Surrey knocked off the 65 runs they needed from 16 overs with 12 balls to spare, losing three wickets in the process.

Surrey played three full-time spinners in this match in Nayan Doshi and Ian Salisbury, but Kumble was head and shoulders above his colleagues.

However, quite inexplicably, Kumble was held back by Surrey captain Mark Butcher until the 18th over of the first session. But once in, Kumble struck with his third ball when he had Chris Rogers (75) stumped.

Kumble also dismissed centurion Usman Afzaal just before lunch for 142 but it was after the break he really came into his own. He got rid of Northants captain David Sales and the next ball had South African all-rounder Lance Klusener caught. Among his other victims were Bilal Shafayat who top scored in the first innings with 91.