Day 3 – Nottinghamshire 488/9 dec, Durham 117/ao
Nottinghamshire cruised past Durham by an innings and 141 runs to clinch a dominant victory inside three days of their LV= Insurance County Championship Division Two clash at the Riverside.
Ben Slater scored his maiden first-class double century to propel the visitors to a commanding total of 488 for nine before the declaration came, leaving Durham requiring 259 runs to make Notts bat again.
However, the hosts collapsed in the afternoon amid fine bowling from the Midlands outfit to slump to a humbling defeat on home soil as Luke Fletcher and James Pattinson claimed three wickets apiece. Nottinghamshire notched 23 points as result of their impressive victory to move top of Division Two, while the home side collected only two from their dismal loss.
Day three began with the pressure on the home side to force their way back into the contest after Notts dominated with the bat on Friday. Matthew Potts should have broken the stand between Slater and James from the second ball of the day. He found James’ outside edge, but it was put down at first slip.
Fortunately for the Durham skipper it was not a costly drop as Potts removed James for 108, uprooting his middle stump with a delivery that kept low, ending the partnership for the fourth wicket at 222. The loss of James brought about a clatter of wickets in the Nottinghamshire lower middle order. Raine’s first over of the day accounted for the dismissals of Steven Mullaney and Tom Moores before he pinned Liam Patterson-White lbw for one.
Slater was unfettered at the other end and worked his way past his previous first-class high score of 172, but faced a nervy wait over lunch five runs shy of a maiden double-century. It did not take long for the Notts opener to reach the milestone for the first time after the break, pushing George Drissell delivery through a gap in the off-side, completing a mammoth effort from 415 balls. Pattinson then played his role to perfection to further frustrate the hosts, providing valuable runs in the lower order in a stand worth 74 for the eighth wicket.
Potts returned for another backbreaking spell, and he earned his rewards by notching his second five-wicket haul, dismissing Pattinson and then Fletcher by removing both batters’ middle stumps. Mullaney called time on the Notts’ innings on 488 for nine with a dominant lead of 258 runs over the home side, with Slater unbeaten on a career-best 225 not out.
The visitors did not take long to make the breakthrough as Fletcher pinned Michael Jones lbw for four, which set the tone for the afternoon session. Keegan Petersen and Sean Dickson offered brief resistance with a 43-run stand aided by a slew of no-balls from the Nottinghamshire seamers, who were all guilty of overstepping one time or another. Pattinson made the breakthrough to spark a collapse in the Durham ranks, removing Petersen on a tight lbw decision, which may have been heading over the top.
Dane Paterson, who also had issues over-stepping, found his rhythm to dismiss Dickson for 19 before securing the prised scalp of David Bedingham for only four to leave the hosts reeling. When Ned Eckersley shouldered his arms at a seaming delivery from Fletcher, Durham were staring down the barrel at 85 for five at the tea interval.
Raine offered resistance for 31 balls, but when he became Fletcher’s third victim the game was up for the home side. Patterson-White found Drissell’s outside edge before Potts received a rasper from Pattinson that he fended to Moores behind the stumps. Borthwick was the final wicket to fall, clipping a tame shot straight to Patterson-White to present Pattinson with his third scalp to secure an emphatic victory for Notts on the road.
Post Match reaction – Day 3
Day 2 – Durham 230ao, Nottinghamshire 371/3
Unbeaten centuries from Ben Slater and Lyndon James have provided Nottinghamshire with a dominant platform against Durham on day two of their LV= Insurance County Championship Division Two clash at the Riverside.Slater was imperious from the start of the day to the close on 164 not out, reaching three figures for the first time in a year in first-class cricket. James played an equally impressive knock to notch his maiden first-class hundred, with the two players sharing an unbroken stand of 216 for the fourth wicket, handing their side a lead of 141 runs to take into day three over the hosts.Matthew Potts claimed figures of three for 88 on a difficult day for the home side, whose thoughts will not have to turn to saving the match over the final two days of the contest.Notts resumed on 50-0, trailing Durham by 180 after their exploits on day one, but Potts made an early breakthrough for Durham to end a promising partnership between Haseeb Hameed and Slater. The 23-year-old nipped one back to clatter into the pads of Hameed to remove the opener for 33. Beginning on 23 not out, Slater was patient in the first hour, but began to find his timing against Ollie Gibson, notching four boundaries from his first two-over burst from the Lumley End.The left-hander ended a lean spell to open the campaign with his first half-century of the 2022 season, and at ease against the Durham attack. Ben Duckett survived a loose drive that he skied into the air, which prevented George Drissell from claiming his first first-class wicket as Scott Borthwick could run back to claim a difficult catch over his shoulder at mid-off.Duckett continued a positive approach to accelerate the Nottinghamshire run rate before lunch, and the former England man pressed past fifty for the third innings in succession following his outstanding form against Glamorgan last week. Duckett seemed at ease and poised for a substantial knock, but the return of Potts drew a false stroke and the left-hander chopped on to his own stumps.One wicket brought a second quickly as David Bedingham took two attempts at second slip, but allowed Potts to remove Joe Clarke for one. Durham were unable to capitalise after lunch as Slater and James consolidated the Notts’ innings, securing the first batting bonus point in the process. After passing Durham’s first-innings total, Slater endured a nervy six-ball wait on 99 against Drissell before he reached his century in fortuitous circumstances.Slater opted for a cut stroke that found an inside edge, smashed in and out of the gloves of Ned Eckersley before the opener was able to scramble through for the single to bring up his 10th first-class hundred. James proved that he was more than an equal partner alongside Slater, posting fifty in 75 balls for the visitors as their stand for the fourth wicket past 100 runs, ensuring that the afternoon belonged to the visitors.In need of inspiration, Scott Borthwick turned to Chris Rushworth and Potts with the new ball at the start of the evening session. However, Slater and James were undeterred with the former highlighting his control by dispatching Potts over the leg-side boundary with a powerful pull stroke. The two players continued their impressive partnership, although Durham were able to slow the run rate in the final hour without making a much-needed breakthrough.Slater ended the day by passing 150, and edging closer to his highest-first class score of 172, while reaching a 200-run partnership with James, a Nottinghamshire record against Durham for the fourth wicket. At the other end, James enjoyed the most significant moment of his career to date, clipping Borthwick to notch his first hundred in first-class cricket, which he celebrated by punching the air to the applause of the visiting balcony.
Post Match reaction – Day 2
Day 1 – Durham 230ao, Nottinghamshire 50/0
A five-fer by Liam Patterson-White put Nottinghamshire firmly in the driving seat on day one against Durham at Chester-le-Street as the hosts failed to capitalise on a good start.
After a quick start to the session which saw a 50 partnership after the first hour and Dickson pass 50 individually, Notts removed both to help sow the seeds of a batting collapse, Dane Paterson removing Jones and Luke Fletcher pinning Dickson LBW.
Notts continued to plug away, Patterson-White spinning his way through the hosts lineup, the spinner claiming the prized wickets of Scott Borthwick and Keegan Petersen to help reduce the hosts to 135-5.
Fletcher, Dane Paterson and James Pattinson all chipped in with wickets to reduce the hosts to 230 all out, Ned Eckersley and Ben Raine making the score somewhat respectable for the home side.
On a sunny day in County Durham, Steven Mullaney won the toss and decided to put the hosts into bat, as Durham went in search of a good start to their innings.
They were provided with one, with Jones and Dickson seeing off the opening overs before setting a decent platform, bringing up the 50 partnership just after the first hour while Notts looked for something out of the seemingly lifeless wicket.
Paterson then removed Jones after he attempted to pull a length delivery, Tom Moores taking a feathered edge behind the stumps as Notts forced their way into the game.
Dickson passed 50 for the third time this season, playing an innings filled with a wide variety of shots, stroking the ball to all corners of the ground as he looked at ease at the crease. But, the returning Luke Fletcher ended his innings, trapping him LBW with the last ball of the morning session.
Patterson-White then took the spotlight after lunch, the left arm spinner pinning Petersen in front with a low delivery for five, before tempting home captain Borthwick to drive and Mullaney taking a juggling catch at slip to send him packing for eight.
David Bedingham played some eye-catching strokes, but he feathered behind off the bowling of Paterson for just 14. Notts taking three quick wickets after the break in a spell that shifted the momentum of the day.
Ned Eckersley played well for his 31, but James Pattinson soon put an end to his resistance, cleaning up his stumps with a beautiful in-swinging delivery.
Liam Trevaskis was forced to retire hurt after being hit twice on the head by Pattinson bouncers, while Ben Raine helped provide some much needed lower order resistance to try and drag Durham towards a respectable first innings total.
Matthew Potts was out for 10 trying to hook Paterson over square leg, before Patterson-White returned to centre stage to clean up the tail to complete his five-fer, collecting the wickets of concussion substitute George Drissell and Raine to leave Durham all out with a first innings total of 230.
Ben Slater and Haseeb Hameed then watchfully saw out the day to leave Notts 50-0, looking to make the most out of day two to try and set up a victory.
Post Match reaction – Day 1