Nottinghamshire enjoyed a successful spell in the field as they bowled out Durham for 253 before suffering batting woes of their own as they stumbled to the close on 66-4 on the opening day of their LV= County Championship match at Chester-le-Street.
The home side had won the toss and elected to bat but were bundled out by a disciplined performance from a Nottinghamshire attack that featured two debutants. Ajmal Shahzad returned figures of 3-71, Samit Patel, Jake Ball and Luke Fletcher each took 2 wicket and Steven Mullaney collected the other.
Although he went without a wicket, Gary Keedy bowled 12 tidy overs on his first appearance for the county. The Notts’ reply got off to a dreadful start as Mullaney and James Taylor fell to consecutive deliveries in the second over to leave the board reading 3-2. Michael Lumb followed for 18 and there wass till time for Samit Patel to edge to slip from the final ball of the day.
“I thought we did well with the ball. We had to make some changes and that altered the balance of the team," said Nottinghamshire Director of Cricket Mick Newell.
“We brought Gary Keedy in for his debut and I thought he bowled very nicely. It looks like it’s a wicket that will turn more as the game goes on.
“It’s been a similar game to the Northants one so far but I think Durham are a slightly stronger team and we’ll have to work hard now to get a first innings advantage.”
The Nottinghamshire side included two debutants, although in both cases the newcomer was an experienced old hand. James Franklin, who has been playing white ball cricket for Notts this season stepped in for his Championship debut for the county and 39-year old spinner Gary Keedy was also given a maiden start. New Zealand’s Franklin, as an international, was presented with his County Cap by Chris Read during the pre-match warm-up.
With Harry Gurney on England duty and Andre Adams out injured, Nottinghamshire’s bowling resources were slightly depleted and it meant that was given the opportunity to share the new ball with Luke Fletcher.
Bowling from the Finchale End, Shahzad’s initial 7-over burst brought him figures of 2-29.
Keaton Jennings (11) was the first to go and was totally culpable as he shouldered arms to a delivery that needed to come back only a fraction to demolish the off stump. In his next over Shahzad struck again as a loose drive from Scott Borthwick (5) flew to James Taylor at point.
The catch was taken at precisely the same moment that Taylor’s name was being announced as being in the England T20 squad for next weekend’s international against India.
Mark Stoneman batted beautifully, not for the first time against Notts, and he sped to his 50 from 66 balls, with 11 boundaries. He’d moved on to 55 before being dislodged by Mullaney’s second delivery, just before lunch, which was taken with the home side on 101-3.
The resumption saw both Michael Richardson and Callum MacLeod have slices of good fortune. On 27 Richardson nearly chopped on to his own stumps and then edged Shahzad at catchable height wide of the slip cordon. MacLeod (18) played back to a ball from Fletcher, which almost came to rest touching the stumps.
The reprieve was short-lived, as the batsman then edged the same bowler and was brilliantly caught, one-handed, at third slip by Mullaney. Richardson became the second Durham player to reach his half century (balls x4) and with Paul Collingwood for company, added 42 for the fifth wicket. Ball, who had looked a little out of sorts after coming under pressure during his early overs, improved considerably and broke the stand, as Collingwood (22) played on.
As tea approached, Durham seemed nicely settled with only 5 wickets down but their position of apparent comfort changed rapidly as Notts struck twice in 7 deliveries. Patel, like Mullaney earlier, claimed a wicket with just the second delivery he sent down. Richardson (73), inexplicably, came charging at the spinner and was smartly stumped by Chris Read, his first Championship stumping of the summer. In the penultimate over of the afternoon session the visitors were celebrating again.
John Hastings (1) chased a delivery from Shahzad and clipped it behind. The success was Shahzad’s 200th first class wicket. Paul Coughlin (13) was well caught by Patel, at second slip, off Fletcher but 21 were then added between Gordon Muchall (37 not out) and Chris Rushworth.
Patel again made the vital breakthrough, trapping Rushworth (9) lbw and Ball got his second wicket as he bowled Durham’s own debutant, Peter Chase (2). With Phil Mustard amongst the missing, Richardson had the gloves on for the home side and conceded 3 byes in the opening over as Rushworth speared one down the leg side.
Michael Lumb, promoted to open, survived a confident lbw shout first ball but was then a watching on-looker as Hastings claimed two wickets in two balls. Mullaney (0) edged behind and Taylor (0) given out lbw to a vicious in-ducker.
Lumb (18) became the third wicket to fall, as Rushworth’s appeal for lbw was upheld in the eleventh over. Samit Patel and Riki Wessels had come into the match on the brink of 1,000 runs in Division One this season.
Patel, on 12, reached the landmark and his partner followed soon afterwards. Patel, who had arrived at the crease in time to survive a hat-trick delivery had shown a welcome return to red ball form as he advanced to 26 but then nibbled the final ball of the day, from Coughlin, to Borthwick at second slip.