Somerset LV Championship Div 1 at Trent Bridge Win 20 Points

 

Day 4

PATERSON FIVE WICKETS SEE NOTTS TO COMFORTABLE WIN

Somerset have no answer to questions asked by the Notts attack

Notts won their opening home championship game by the emphatic margin of 165 runs after bowling Somerset out for 129 all out this afternoon with Dane Paterson leading the way with 5 for 46, ably supported by Brett Hutton 3-44 and Stuart Broad 2-21. Somerset having won the toss had bowled indifferently in the opening session of Day 1 and from that point they were always chasing the game.

Hutton hit the first delivery of the day from Overton (Radcliffe Road End) for an offside boundary and later in the over Mullaney hit a straight four. The skipper though fell to the third delivery of Siddle's opening over miscuing the former Notts man and skying the ball to Gregory at mid-off. Mullaney out for 33, 201 for 7. Gregory replaced Overton immediately after he bowled five deliveries of his uncompleted over from last night. Broad hit a breezy 11 including two boundaries before being comprehensively bowled going for a legside hoick against Gregory, 210 for 8 in the 67th over. Hutton (28) was the last man to fall, caught at deep mid-wicket off Gregory. Notts 211 all out. Moores absent hurt with a broken finger. Gregory 4 for 64 and Siddle 3 for 34. Notts total was very much a team effort with innings top score of 34 from Hameed and a highest partnership of 52 (for the second wicket).

Somerset required 295 off 88 overs, a tough ask on a cloudy and cool day in mid-April at Trent Bridge. Broad bowled the opening over from the Pavilion End with Clarke keeping wicket. Hutton dismissed Lammonby (7) lbw in the 4th over, 15 for 1. But the early exchanges did not involve much extravagant ball movement and Bancroft who had joined Dickson in the middle looked relatively settled. However this was to change. In the 11th over a peach of a delivery from Broad removed Bancroft's (16) off stump, 37 for 2. Dickson (14) fell in Broad's next over brilliantly caught by Duckett diving to his left at second slip, 41 for 3. In the following over, Abell was plumb leg before to Hutton for 2, 48 for 4 after 14 overs. Notts well on top.

Broad (8 1 21 2) and Hutton (8 1 24 2) both bowled 8 over spells and were replaced by Paterson and Patterson-White respectively just before lunch. Somerset got to the interval on 57 for 4 after 19 overs with Rew on 6 and Kohler Cadmore on 5.

In the second over after lunch, Kohler Cadmore was caught behind by Clarke off Paterson, 58 for 5 in the 21st over. Lyndon James had a four over spell immediately after lunch from the Radcliffe Road End but then made way for the returning Hutton who had Gregory (12) lbw with his sixth delivery of his new spell, 89 for 6 after 28 overs. The very next ball Paterson had Rew caught at first slip by substitute Calvin Harrison, 89 for 7. Four deliveries later, Overton was caught by Harrison, this time at third slip as Paterson picked up his third wicket of the innings and his 500th of his first-class career, 89 for 8. A brilliant effort, from the man who spent much of youth attached to Somerset, the leg-spinner diving low to his left. One of the features of the match was the outstanding catching from both sides. Leach (11) backing away skied a short delivery from Paterson and James took the catch running backwards from point, the ninth wicket partnership with Davey added 26 runs. At 1509,Paterson took the last wicket, Siddle (12) chipping him to mid-off, Somerset 129 all out off 38.2 overs. Davey 17 not out.

Notts’ seam bowling had surpassed their opponents as Notts now stand fifth in the early standings with their next opponents Middlesex currently bottom having lost both their initial games of 2023. MAG

Day 3

HUTTON'S NOTTS BEST SETS UP FASCINATING LAST DAY

This match is delicately poised with Notts leading 270 runs with 4 second innings wickets still standing but with the injured Tom Moores not expected to bat. Notts, and Brett Hutton in particular, bowled very well in the opening session. Somerset at one stage stood at 87 for 8 but a 66 ball 60 from Josh Davey meant that Somerset almost doubled their score finishing with 173 all out, conceding a lead of 87 runs. On a wicket still giving the bowlers plenty of assistance, Notts ground their way to 186 for 6 before bad light stopped play with 11 balls still to be bowled.

After yesterday's total washout, an extra 30 minutes was added to the day which meant 104 overs were scheduled to be bowled in what turned out to be very long day. After a cloudy morning, the sun broke out in the afternoon and the temperature reached an almost balmy 12 degrees. Broad and Paterson started posing problems from the off. In the 21st over (sixth of the morning), Paterson had Bancroft (27) leg before walking across his crease, 37 for three. In his next over, Paterson had Abell superbly caught at second slip by Duckett diving to his right, 50 for 4. 

After a six over spell from the Radcliffe Road End, Broad was replaced by Hutton who had Kohler-Cadmore plumb leg before for 10, 70 for 5. Rew was dropped in the gully when on 11, a very difficult chance to James diving to his right off Paterson. Gregory (5) attempting an ugly leg side heave was bowled by Hutton, a dramatic dismissal which saw his middle stump broken. Next ball, Overton fell leg before a golden duck as Hutton went nap, 80 for 7 after 32 overs. Hutton missed his hat trick but picked his sixth wicket in the following over as Rew (18) lost his off stump, 87 for 8. Hutton 3 wickets in 7 balls. 

Broad who was to remain wicket less replaced Hutton for the 40th over. Leach (10) mistimed a pull shot off James and the ball ballooned to Mullaney at mid-wicket, 118 for 9 after 41 overs. Davey hit James for a straight six. With Somerset 125 for 9 off 42.2 overs, Moores went off with what looked like a nasty wrist injury as he struggled to take a delivery from James that moved late. Clarke took the gloves. Davey hit the next ball for six over square leg. Lunch was delayed for 30 minutes as 9 wickets were down, but time impressive Davey and Siddle stood firm, as Mullaney set negative fields. Paterson was brought back for the 45th over but could not make the breakthrough. Patterson-White came on for the 48th over. Davey got to his 50 off 54 balls with a two off Patterson-White. Somerset 161 for 9 off 51 overs with Davey on 54 and Siddle on 10. Advantage Notts at lunch.

In the 2nd over after lunch , Davey (60 off 66 balls, 5x4,2x6) finally fell caught at first slip by Hutton off Paterson. Somerset 173 all out, Notts led by 83 runs. The last wicket stand between Davey and Siddle added what could turn out a crucial 55 runs in 12 overs. Hutton who bowled the first over after lunch finished with a Notts best 6 for 45, well-supported by Paterson 3-50. Hutton’s previous Notts best was against Durham at Trent Bridge in 2015. His career best figures remain the 8-57 he took for Northants v Gloucestershire at Wantage Road in 2018.

Overton (Radcliffe Road End) and Davey opened the bowling with 64 overs left but Hameed and Duckett survived their initial burst. Siddle replaced Davey and with his first ball had Duckett (15) chipping to Lammonby at mid-wicket, 30 for 1 in the 10th over. Notts reached their 50 in the 18th over with a leg side drive four from Hameed off Siddle. Tea was taken 1600 with Notts 55 for 1 off 19 overs with Hameed on 27 and Slater on 7.

Top-scorer Hameed (34 off 75 balls, 6x4) departed caught low down by Kohler Cadmore at first slip off Gregory, 72 for 2 in the 25th over. A strange dismissal as the bowler was initially appealing for a leg before verdict but after conferring with square leg umpire David Millns, Mike Burns raised the finger to send a somewhat bemused Hameed on his way. 

Clarke failed once again being lbw to Siddle for 7, 83 for 3 in the 28th over. Overton returned from the Radcliffe Road End and had Slater (24) well caught at second slip by Bancroft , 93 for 4 in the 31st over. Slater took a long while to get going but hit four boundaries in his 65-ball innings. James (32 off 50 balls, 6x4), playing his best knock of the season, including two glorious cover drives off Overton in the 33rd over. But frustratingly he departed to a soft dismissal, Leach having come on from the Radcliffe Road End for the 41st over had him gently tapping the ball back to the slow left-armer’s second delivery and was caught and bowled, 126 for 5. With Moores seemingly out of the match, Patterson-White came in at number seven. In the 42nd over, Mullaney pulled Davey for 6 over square leg, the bowler pulled up lame in the same over with what appeared to be a hamstring injury and Gregory had to bowl the last delivery of the over. Davey’s day ending on a disappointing note after his innings earlier in the day had rescued Somerset and kept them very much in the contest. A four through backward point by Patterson-White off Leach saw Notts to 150 in the 45th over. Mullaney hit Gregory for 6 over six, the ball just avoiding the reach of the leaping Overton on the ropes. Gregory got a delivery to lift and Patterson-White (12) fended the delivery to Overton in the gulley, 161 for 6 in the 48th over. Mullaney and Hutton decided to bed down for the rest of play and batted expertly playing the match situation well whilst adding a crucial 26 runs in 15 overs in the late evening sunshine with the sun slowly setting. Somerset’s over rate, despite ten overs from Leach was still decidedly pedestrian. Bad light stopped play at 1923 with Notts 182 for 6 off 62.1 overs with Mullaney on 29 (off 78 balls, 1x4, 2x6) and Hutton on 20 (53 balls, 2x4). Somerset had bowled well in helpful conditions throughout the innings and were aided by some fine athletic ground fielding.

Notts will looking to get a lead of around 300 before laying down the gauntlet early tomorrow. All results are possible, but Notts will be hoping that their seam quartet of Broad, Hutton, Paterson and James bring home the victory. A fascinating day awaits. MAG

Day 2

NO PLAY ON FRIDAY DUE TO RAIN

What's happened to the weather forecast for today? The previously forecast showers have now been replaced with prolonged heavy rain with a dash of lightning for good measure!'

Day 1

GREGORY BLOWS NOTTS AWAY AS HOSTS SQUANDER GOOD START

A career best bowling performance by Lewis Gregory (7-84) was instrumental in bowling Notts out for 256 after the visitors won the toss and chose to field. On a cold, blustery day with intermittent sunshine Notts dominated a slightly truncated morning session as openers Duckett and Hameed remained unparted. The Somerset bowlers, possibly hampered by a strong morning cross wind which died down after lunch, bowled much better as Notts collapsed from 164-1to 256 all out in 26.3 overs.

Fletcher and Stone were omitted from the line-up which had faced Hampshire and were replaced by Broad and Hutton. Overton (Radcliffe Road End) and Davey opened the bowling with Duckett and Hameed looking comfortable. With the score on 16 for 0 after 6 overs, Siddle replaced Overton. Siddle only bowled two overs before switching ends and being replaced by Gregory. Hameed finally got the mark after 29 balls with a single off Siddle. The 50 partnership between Duckett and Hameed came up in 87 balls. Leach came on from the Pavilion End for the 20th over with Notts 68 for 0. A reverse sweep for 6 off the slow left armer saw Duckett to his 50 off 61 balls. In his following over, Duckett hit Leach for two fours. Leach proved expensive his 6 overs going for 36, and he did bowl again during the Notts innings. In the 23rd over, Davey replaced Gregory from the Radcliffe Road End. A swept four by Duckett off Leach saw the hundred partnership off 154 balls. Rain stopped play with Notts 106 for 0 at 1249 off 25.5 overs with Duckett on 68 and Hameed on 30. Lunch was immediately taken.

The game was turned on his head after lunch with the wind now much less strong and the Somerset now bowling a more consistent line and length. In the 33rd over, Duckett was adjudged leg before to Overton for 75 (off 91 balls, 13x4, 1x6), 125 for 1. Umpire Millns raising the finger to a delivery that may have been drifting down leg side. A slashed four over the slip heads by Hameed off Gregory saw him to a 120-ball 50. Light rain stopped play at 1425 with Notts 145 for 1 off 39.3 overs with Hameed on 53 and Slater on 8.

Play restarted at 1447. Hameed (65 off 151 balls, 11x4) playing a cross batted swipe edge Gregory into Rew's gloves, 164 for 2 in the 47th over. A start of a dramatic collapse with Notts losing eight wickets for 66 in 20.4 overs.

A poor shot from saw Slater (15) mistime a pull off a short ball from Gregory and he was caught at mid-wicket by Abell and next ball James was bowled middle stump for a golden duck, 171 for 4 in the 49th over, a cracking delivery and a third wicket for Gregory. The procession continued as Clarke (8) was caught at second slip by Bancroft off Siddle, 185 for 5 in the 54th over. Siddle removed Mullaney (12) lbw to be a delivery that kept low , 186 for 6 in the 56th over. Rain stopped play at 1609 with Notts 186 for 6 off 57.5 overs with both Moores and Patterson-White both yet to score. Tea was taken.

No play was lost as hostilities resumed at 1629. A cover driven for Moores off Siddle saw Notts to 200 in the 60th over. Moores chipped Overton for a six over square leg in the 63rd over. Patterson-White (7) was lbw to the returning Gregory, 217 for 7 in the 65th over. Moores (32) hit Gregory for another six, this time over backward square leg but he fell to the very next ball leg before as Gregory picked up his fifth wicket. Broad lasted two balls before being caught behind by Rew off Gregory, 230 for 9 in the 67th over. Hutton and Paterson put an unlikely 26 for the last wicket. Notts got to their only batting point via two byes from a legside delivery from Gregory to Paterson that keeper Rew failed to stop. Paterson (15) fell to catch a wide third man by Dickson, once again off Gregory who finished with 18.5-1-84-7. Notts 256 all out off 72.5 overs with Hutton 8 not out. Somerset had bowled well after lunch with Gregory outstanding and he was backed up by Siddle (17-6-37-2) and Overton (16-4-35-1) proved economical. Some of the Notts batters though were culpable to their own dismissals. After being 164-1, Notts should have attained an higher total.

Somerset had 21 overs to bat. Lammonby was dropped on 2 off Broad (Pavilion End) in the third over by Moores diving to his left, an easy chance. In the following over, Sean Dickson fell for a duck, leg before to Hutton, 2 for 1. Paterson replaced Broad for the 9th over. In the 10th over, Hutton picked up his second wicket when he had Lammonby (4) caught behind by Moores, 19 for 2. Hutton bowled a six over spell and made way for Broad. Bad light stopped play at 1847 with Somerset 28 for 2 off 15 overs with Bancroft on 21 and Abell on 3. Six overs remained to be bowled. MAG

Notts squad news has been released without much explanation. It does not include either Luke Fletcher or Olly Stone.

Haseeb Hameed
Ben Duckett

Ben Slater

Joe Clarke

Lyndon James

Matthew Montgomery

Steven Mullaney

Tom Moores

Liam Patterson-White

Stuart Broad

Brett Hutton

Jake Ball

Dane Paterson

Somerset squad: 

Tom Abell, 

Kasey Aldridge, 

Cameron Bancroft, 

George Bartlett, 

Jack Brooks, 

Josh Davey, 

Sean Dickson, 

Lewis Gregory, 

Tom Kohler-Cadmore,

Tom Lammonby, 

Jack Leach, 

Craig Overton, 

James Rew

Peter Siddle.

Showers are on the menu for the first 3 days of the game again now!.
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Round 2 starts on Thursday. What's the weather going to be like?
Well, they don't seem able to forecast accurately more than a few hours ahead at the moment. The forecast yesterday was for Thursday in West Bridgford to be wall to wall showers but today that has changed to largely dry, but what will tomorrow's predictions be?

On the field, all under-achieved at the Rose Bowl, although one did exceed expectations (as expectations for him were so low alas).

If Stuart Broad is available, then Stuart Broad will play. So who will make way?

Fletch at Trent Bridge in April, unthinkable!

The Great Dane, the one that makes things happen with the old ball with reverse swing and our only overseas player. I doubt that move is on Peter's radar and it shouldn't be!

Stone the crows, that leaves Olly unless the brains that be design a way to weaken our batting line-up, the one that's not yet firing as we'd hoped. I'm sure that the (Peter and Mick) dream would be Stone and Broad bowling in tandem. Oh what a dilemma!

Leaving Lyndon out, upsets the balance of the eleven, that's been done before and it didn't work. 

Ben Slater is being played out of (his opener) position by request of England to accommodate Duckett opening. Before the Hampshire game, Slater's average batting at 3 (from a small sample of occasions) was something like 13 (according to the Story lass on commentary last week). So will he be forced out after just one game?

If Stuart isn't available, then expect the same squad and same starting eleven because, if nothing else, Peter is loyal to his players and backs his own judgement calls week on week on week and on week. 

One defeat doesn't send us back to being the whipping boys of 2019 just yet, keep the faith Harry!