David Hussey scored a quick-fire 34 as Notts Outlaws tuned up for Saturday’s Friends Provident t20 semi-final with a dominant rain-reduced victory over Warwickshire Bears.

Persistent rain resulted in a 16-over contest and having lost the toss, Warwickshire were unable to register a competitive total, eventually posting 81-6 after slipping to 40-5.

Ryan Sidebottom conceded just 12 runs from his four overs removing Rikki Clarke’s middle stump for his solitary wicket having been denied a stonewall lbw with the first delivery of the match.

Hussey was in dynamite form in the field taking three high-hanging catches to improve the returns of Paul Franks (2-19) and Steven Mullaney (1-22).

Warwickshire in contrast were lacklustre in the field, gifting Notts four runs when Varun Chopra fielded the ball and threw it beyond Darren Maddy for four.

Unable to include in-form all-rounder Neil Carter, a major doubt for Monday’s LV= County Championship clash, the Bears had some success in removing Alex Hales (4) and Ali Brown (14) but Samit Patel and David Hussey played with confident aggression to setup the win.

The win strengthens the Outlaws’ position in their Clydesdale Bank 40 group where they trail Warwickshire by one point with a game in hand.