Only 25 overs of play were possible on the second day of Nottinghamshire's LV= county championship match against Durham at Trent Bridge.
With a light shower interrupting the morning session, and then heavy rain settling in during the afternoon, the visitors were only able to advance their first innings score to 78-2, responding to Notts’ first day score of 377.
Ajmal Shahzad claimed both wickets to fall but further progress was denied the home attack as Keaton Jennings and Gordon Muchall combined in an unbroken third wicket stand of 31 in the lead-up to lunch.
Mick Newell, Nottinghamshire's Director of Cricket, bemoaned the loss of so much play.
“I thought the forecast for today looked OK and then for the next two days it is poor, so we knew we had to have a big day today - so to only play one session is very disappointing," he said.
With his bowling line-up looking particularly strong for this fixture Newell admitted he was content with what he’d seen in the short amount of play possible.
“I thought we bowled well - we pitched the ball up and gave it a chance to swing and I think we were challenging at times, we made some opportunities which we didn’t take so in general with a pretty strong four-man attack I was quite pleased.”
Having dismissed the home side in the final over of the previous evening, Durham began their first innings at the start of the day.
Notts, fielding four front-line bowlers with Test match experience for the first time since the win at Edgbaston in 2010, had little joy in the opening half hour as Mark Stoneman and Keaton Jennings eased their way into the day.
Peter Siddle had one confident lbw appeal against Stoneman quickly waved aside by umpire Bainton and then the same bowler rattled Jennings on the helmet as he ducked into a shortish delivery.
In the fifth over of the day the gloom had got so bad that the floodlights were switched on but they weren’t able to provide continuous play alone, as light drizzle forced the players from the field at the start of the ninth.
After a 13-minute stoppage, play resumed and there was soon a life for Jennings. On 12 he fended off a delivery from Siddle which James Taylor, at short leg, did well to get a hand to before it rolled away to freedom.
Ajmal Shahzad then replaced Siddle at the Radcliffe Road End, coming on to bowl against the county that enabled him to pick up his best career figures, 5-51 in 2010.
Shahzad was clearly chomping at the bit – and looking to pick up where he left off in the Northants match a fortnight ago. On that occasion he claimed three of the last four wickets to fall – this time he was quickly amongst the opposition batsmen with two wickets inside eight deliveries.
Stoneman (23) was first to depart, easily caught by Read after a thickish nick on one that nipped away off the seam and then Mark Richardson (4) inside-edged his own off stump to the ground.
Jennings was again reprieved, as Riki Wessels grassed an opportunity at first slip, off Andre Adams and Notts then also celebrated what they thought was another caught behind against the same batsman in the final over of the session.
As the players left the field for lunch light drizzle began to fall and it intensified throughout the remainder of the day, leaving the decision to call off play a formality.