Muhammad Abbas took five wickets on his Nottinghamshire debut to put the Nottinghamshire in a strong position against his former county after 16 wickets fell on day two of their Rothesay County Championship clash with Hampshire.
The 34-year-old Pakistan seamer, who took 180 first-class wickets in four summers at the Utilita Bowl before agreeing to move to Trent Bridge for part of this season, finished with five for 31 as Hampshire were bowled out for 196 in their first innings in reply to Nottinghamshire’s 333.
The home side slipped to 59 for five in their second innings but Jack Haynes (60 not out) and Liam Patterson-White (44 not out) helped them recover to 171 for six at the close for a lead of 308, which already looks like a winning advantage on a pitch that has given plenty of assistance to the bowlers.
Earlier, Kyle Abbott - Abbas’s former new ball partner on the south coast - hit three sixes in a feisty 67 to rescue Hampshire from 106, going on to add two wickets to his own five-wicket first-innings haul.
Bowling initially from the Radcliffe Road end, Abbas dismissed Nick Gubbins via a catch to fourth slip to claim his first scalp in Nottinghamshire colours in his fifth over as Hampshire, two without loss overnight, found themselves 31 for two after 40 minutes, having already lost opener Mark Stoneman, caught and bowled by Brett Hutton.
Fletcha Middleton was caught behind as a ball from Lyndon James climbed on him sharply enough to prompt a miscued pull but, approaching lunch, Hampshire might have felt they had the foundation for a decent response to Nottinghamshire’s first innings.
But that assessment was blown apart as Abbas returned to the attack from the Stuart Broad End, taking three wickets in as many overs either side of the break, turning 96 for three into 99 for six.
Prest, having struck back-to-back boundaries as Abbas momentarily lost his lines, was leg before as the next ball struck him plumb in front. Ben Brown’s off stump was sent cartwheeling and Toby Albert nicked to second slip.
Hutton beat James Fuller’s defensive prod at 106 for seven, after which, still 227 behind, Hampshire could quickly have found themselves batting for a second time had it not been for Abbott.
The South African hit a half-century from 36 balls as he added 42 for the eighth wicket with Liam Dawson, plus 30 for the ninth with Brad Wheal, last man Sonny Baker keeping him company long enough for the follow-on to be avoided.
Dawson fell to a superb catch by Farhan Ahmed at extra cover as Abbas completed his quintet, Wheal becoming a second victim for James in almost a duplicate of Middleton’s dismissal before lunch.
Abbott, who lofted a straight six off the left-arm spin of Patterson-White and twice cleared the rope hooking Hutton, was ultimately caught at long-on. It gave Ahmed a wicket with his second ball and while Hampshire trailed by 137 runs, it was much fewer than had seemed likely.
Abbott then dismissed both Nottinghamshire openers in his first four second-innings overs with no sign of the match’s rapid evolution slowing down. He bowled Haseeb Hameed, seemingly beaten for pace, and had Ben Slater nicking to slip.
A wicket in the last over before tea and two more shortly afterwards left Nottinghamshire in peril at 59 for five, albeit 196 runs in front.
Joe Clarke was caught behind trying to pull Wheal, Fuller then had first-innings centurion Freddie McCann caught behind off an outside edge before Wheal picked up a second as Kyle Verreynne was bowled by a ball he chose to leave.
Nottinghamshire lost a sixth wicket for 84 as James pulled Sonny Baker’s first delivery to mid-off but, with signs that some of the venom in the pitch might be starting to dissipate, Haynes and Patterson-White put together a partnership so far worth 87 that might have put the game out of Hampshire’s reach.
Day two attendance: 1337.
