Head Coach Peter Moores praised his Nottinghamshire side for the way they fought through difficult periods to come out as emphatic winners in their Specsavers County Championship match with Northamptonshire at Trent Bridge.
The hosts took the remaining five wickets they needed to win – Adam Rossington was unable to bat for the visitors – in 16.5 fourth-day overs to secure victory by 163 runs.
A seventh success of the four-day campaign was clear-cut in the end, but Moores insists Notts were pushed hard at times.
“It looks like a very easy win when you see the end of it but it was much tighter than it seemed,” said Moores.
“Throughout the game there were some periods where we played some really good cricket.
“Harry Gurney and Riki Wessels put on 32 for the last wicket in the first innings meant we had a 70-odd run lead rather than a 40-odd run one, which got the momentum going our way.
“We then bowled well and that innings from Riki in the second innings was a stunning innings and put the game in our control.
“The pitch did quite a bit in the first session and they bowled really well. As it went on, there was always going to be periods where you would lose a couple of wickets.
“The question was could we jump on the chances to score runs and, though we didn’t get what we wanted, we got up to a competitive score.”
Notts have now passed the 200-mark point for the season and are getting towards the point where they can now count how many points they will need to reclaim a place in Division One.
But Moores says nothing is certain as yet with games against fellow high-flyers Sussex and Worcestershire – plus the return match at Northants – to come.
He said: “It gets closer. The interesting thing is that other sides at the top keep winning as well.
“It makes next week’s game against Worcestershire at Trent Bridge another really big game, and it’s made it exciting all year.
“We haven’t looked for a draw yet – we’ve looked to win all our games – and I think that’s made us a hard side to beat.”
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