As the days begin to lengthen and the skies begin to brighten, April is a special month in the cricket lovers’ calendar.
The return of the quintessentially English summer sport from its winter slumber is always a cause for celebration – and the game often returns with some enthralling action on the season’s opening day.
Whilst events this year may have been delayed, trentbridge.co.uk delved into the archives to relive some of the finest opening days from the past 20 years.
2019 – Joe Clarke makes his mark
It was an early-season contest which was pitched as a battle between a pair of international giants in Stuart Broad and Joe Root.
But by the time stumps was called on day one of Nottinghamshire’s clash with Yorkshire, it was another Englishman’s name which was on everybody’s lips.
Joe Clarke’s maiden County Championship innings for his new county was imperious, with the 22-year-old completing a chanceless century before the close of play.
Clarke hit seventeen boundaries in an innings which showed off the full repertoire of his four-day strokeplay, and his command of the crease continued in the second innings, when only a declaration prevented him from reaching three figures once more.
2018 – Jake Ball takes five
New Nottinghamshire captain Steven Mullaney was forced to wait 24 hours longer than anticipated to begin his tenure as skipper – but when he did, there was much to cheer in the field.
Jake Ball opened the bowling alongside Luke Fletcher, and the pair did arguably their best work in the morning session, conceding only 26 runs between them in the opening hour.
It was a spell of sustained pressure which brought rewards later in the day, Ball helping to clean up the tail to finish with figures of 5/43 as Lancashire were dismissed for 158.
2017 – Pattinson pounces, Read reaches landmark
James Pattinson’s first day of competitive action for Notts was just one of the reasons the opening day of the 2017 season will live long in the memory.
The man who would prove so crucial to Nottinghamshire’s charge to the top of Division Two made an immediate impact for his new county, showing pace and aggression on his way to claiming 3/55 as Leicestershire were dismissed for 251.
But it was a man at the other end of his career in green and gold who stole the headlines, with a fine low catch off Stuart Broad taking Chris Read to 1,000 catches in first-class cricket.
It was one of three catches for Read on the opening day of a contest Notts would go on to win by ten wickets.
2016 – Mullaney mauls Surrey
The current Nottinghamshire captain cemented his place at the top of the order in 2016 with a quickfire hundred at Trent Bridge.
Despite a greenish tinge to the wicket suggesting conditions were far from ideal, the right-hander hit 113 from 114 balls, making light work of the loss of his opening partner Greg Smith inside the first seven overs.
It was merely the continuation of a purple patch for Mullaney, who had aleady reached three figures earlier that week when he scored 139 against Cambridge MCCU.
And his 42 in the second innings were equally crucial to securing a three-wicket win after Surrey were invited to follow on.
2015 – Taylor enters the record books
Mullaney’s feat had also been achieved twelve months previously by Brendan Taylor, the Zimbabwean following up his century against Loughborough MCCU with another three-figure score in the Championship opener at Lord’s.
The 29-year-old negotiated a difficult opening hour in spring-like conditions before finding his range later in the day, reaching his hundred from 160 balls.
In doing so, he became the first player in the county’s history to score hundreds in his initial two first-class matches for the county.
Other notable opening days:
2012 – Twenty wickets fell in the day as Notts responded to being dismissed for 118 by bowling Worcestershire out for 130, on the way to a 92-run win.
2011 – Andre Adams took 5/54 as the reigning champions opened the defence of their title by bowling Hampshire out for 218.
2010 – Hashim Amla hit a maiden Championship century for Notts as they moved towards a total of 456 which would prove too much for Kent, the hosts ultimately triumphing by an innings and 32 runs.
2008 – Darren Pattinson took 5/22 to begin the season which would see him win a Test cap for England, contributing towards the dismissal of Kent for 162.
2005 – David Hussey reached three figures as Notts scored 399 runs in a day against Middlesex as they began a campaign which would end with them in possession of the County Championship pennant.
*******
Nottinghamshire Membership for the 2020 season is on sale, with those who join for next season bestowed access to all scheduled Notts home matches, international tickets in Members' areas and a range of exclusive benefits.