Nottinghamshire Second XI took a firm grip of their game with the MCC Young Cricketers on day two – but still have work to do to secure victory.
After the visitors resumed on 78-2, they were bowled out for 275 - as spinner Jordan Cook took 3-69 – to give skipper Paul Coughlin’s side a 107-run first innings lead.
And while no batsman dominated in the Notts second innings, as they moved to 170-6 at the close, the progress was still enough to establish an advantage of 277 runs - setting up a possible push for victory on the final day.
The MCC started well enough in the morning session, but Cook started the fall of wickets when he swooped at extra cover and threw down the non-striker’s wicket to run out Billy Mead for 43.
Marc Lezar (9) was next to go as he was pouched on the square leg boundary by Luke Wood to give Cook his first wicket and make the score 128-4.
After completing his fifty from 74 balls and with eight fours, Kashif Ali was dismissed for 54 when he went forward to a ball from Cook and was stumped by Tom Keast.
Fynn Hudson-Prentice (36) added useful runs only to lose his middle stump to Ishraj Jandhu from the fifth ball after lunch before Ben Brookes joined Eliot Callis to add 59 for the seventh wicket.
However, Brookes (30) was caught by Keast off Lyndon James’ bowling while Jandhu got Kiel van Vollenhoven (11) to drive a ball straight to Chris Gibson at cover.
Replacement Jake Dunford was bowled Cook without scoring and last man Dominic Manthorpe also fell for a duck as he edged a catch to keeper Keast off Joey Evison’s bowling, leaving Callis unbeaten on 47.
Notts began their second innings straight after tea and began well as Gibson (42) and Solomon Budinger (30) put on 59 in just under 12 overs before the latter nicked Hudson-Prentice through to keeper Dunford.
Gibson looked set to take his aggregate of runs for the match to over 200 until he was the victim of a good catch at extra cover by Lezar off van Vollenhoven’s bowling, leaving Notts on 84-2.
Keast (8) was adjudged lbw to van Vollenhoven and soon after the bowler then ran out Wood (4) with a smart piece of fielding and a direct hit.
Coughlin (16) was fifth out as he caught at mid-on by Callis from Brookes’ bowling, while van Vollenhoven caught and bowled James for 17.
With 15 overs still to be bowled, the home side needed to stop the clatter of wickets and Savin Perera (16 not out) and Evison (22 not out, pictured) did just that, as the pair successfully saw the side to close of play, adding an unbeaten 43 in the process.
The visitors’ van Vollenhoven finished the day on 3-57 off 17 overs.
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