ANOTHER WICKET FILLED DAY LEAVES NOTTS WITH A TOUGH TASK

Two former South African internationals held up Nottinghamshire’s promotion charge on the second day of their Specsavers County Championship match against Northamptonshire at Wantage Road.

 

Rory Kleinveldt followed up his first day score of 43 with career-best bowling figures of nine for 65 as Notts were bowled out for 151, a first innings deficit of 43.

 

Kleinveldt had taken four of his wickets on the first evening but bowled an unchanged spell of 12.4 overs, taking five for 31 as Notts were dismissed before lunch.

 

Richard Levi then blasted a century from 93 balls, before being eventually dismissed for 115 – an innings that contained 15 fours and four sixes – as the home side posted 270.

 

Luke Wood claimed four for 31, to take match figures of eight for 83.

 

Set to score 314, Notts closed on 33 for two, still requiring 281 more, with Kleinveldt again to the fore in taking both wickets to fall.

 

Brett Hutton picked up three for 74 in Northants second innings, following on from his three for 52 on the first day. He believes that his side have the capability to reach their victory target.

 

“They’ve bowled well with the new ball in both innings but the depth we’ve got with our batting line-up, we feel we’ve got every chance of chasing them down.”

 

Hutton added, “We’ve done it a couple of times this year in white ball games and we’ve got over the line when people might have written us off. We’ve got the capability of doing it and we’ll do it again.

 

“This is obviously a result pitch, with Northants knowing that they needed a win to stand any chance of promotion but it has flattened out a touch and the class of batters we’ve got, we’ve every chance of getting them.”

 

Hutton was involved in a dramatic relay catch, flicking the ball back into play after it appeared to be going over his head for six, with substitute fielder Matt Milnes on hand to dive and complete the dismissal.

 

“It might have looked like we’d spoken about doing something like that but we hadn’t said a word. I thought I was catching it near the rope – but I wasn’t – so I threw it back in, so it didn’t go for six, but Milnesy did the rest by putting in a dive to catch it.

 

“It probably looked better than it felt. We just reacted and Milnesy pulled off a blinder. It was very good from him to have the thought to get near me in case something like that happened.”

 

The day began with Nottinghamshire resuming on 80 for five in their first innings, still 114 runs behind. Billy Root, on 11, and nightwatchman Luke Wood had survived the final couple of overs of the previous evening together but were soon separated.

 

Kleinveldt’s day got off to the best possible start as his second delivery flicked off the outside edge of Root’s bat and Ben Duckett took a low catch at first slip.

 

Notts had been 79 for four edging into the penultimate over of the first day but Kleinveldt’s third wicket in as many overs reduced them to 86 for seven when Tom Moores was given out lbw for one.

 

Chris Read made 17, helping Wood add 42 but the captain fell to a catch at the wicket and was followed back to the dressing room by Hutton; bowled for one.

 

Wood dominated the last wicket partnership with Harry Gurney, pulling Nathan Buck for the first six of the contest.

 

The left-hander eventually fell to a caught and bowled offering, giving Kleinveldt his fifth wicket of the morning, a ball after a lengthy stoppage for treatment to Alex Wakeley.

 

The Northants skipper had been attempting to catch Wood, running out towards long on. As the ball dropped over his shoulder, the fielder dived forward and the ball rebounded off the turf into his face.

 

Medical attention was quickly at the scene, with Wakeley led away with a towel covering the injury. Earlier, Duckett had also been forced to leave the field, after sustaining a finger injury when Read nicked one low into the slip cordon.

 

In Duckett’s absence David Murphy opened the Northants second innings, alongside Rob Newton but his tenure was brief.

 

The wicketkeeper-batsman made just two before skying a pull off Wood that the bowler called loudly for and took cleanly.

 

That dismissal brought Levi to the crease and after a careful, playing in period, he unloaded. He hit Steven Mullaney for back-to-back fours in one over and then four in a row in his next, to move to a half century from only 40 balls, a knock that included two maximums and eight fours.

 

No other partnership in the contest had reached 50 but Levi and Newton extended theirs into three figures before bad light produced an early tea.

 

Their stand advanced to 147 before Notts struck, with Hutton having Newton caught at slip by Mullaney for 53.

 

Like London buses – another wicket followed in the same over as Rob Keogh followed, without scoring – this time Riki Wessels made the low catch.

 

From 151 for one, it slid to 162 for four as Mullaney took another remarkable catch, dismissing Josh Cobb for eight. Bowler Patel’s celebration were understandable, it was his 300th first class victim.

 

Levi moved from 93 to 99 with a mighty blow off Hutton and then guided the next ball past point to bring up his hundred, made from 93 balls, with 14 fours and four sixes.

 

The perseverance of Hutton finally accounted for the centurion, with the off stump sent cartwheeling out of the ground. Levi, deservedly, walked off to a standing ovation.

 

Nathan Buck swung handsomely during his stay in the middle; twice he lifted Patel over the ropes before being bowled by Wood for 26.

 

Harry Gurney dug a short one in to Kleinveldt, who had continued his fine form in making 48.

 

The batsman pulled high over the rope at long leg but Hutton athletically dived and scooped the ball back into play, whilst in mid-flight – with Matt Milnes, on as a sub fielder – close enough to put in a dive of his own to complete the dismissal. Staggeringly good fielding from them both.

 

The end came in dramatic fashion. Ben Sanderson chipped Wood into the hands of Cheteshwar Pujara at mid on and Richard Gleeson was bowled first ball.

 

Wakeley had bravely wandered out at number eight and was unbeaten on five, with Duckett unfit to bat.

 

The run chase began in the dying embers of a cloudy day and saw Kleinveldt add to his impressive haul of wickets by bowling Mullaney for two and having Root caught at slip for seven.