Nottinghamshire go in search of their first victory in this season’s Specsavers County Championship when they play Hampshire in the Isle of Wight, beginning on Monday 20 May 2019.

Peter Moores’ side have lost their last two contests but make the short trip across the Solent determined to return to winning ways and kickstart their four-day season.

Hampshire have won two of their three championship matches and have also advanced to the final of the Royal London One-Day Cup.

Head-To-Head

Nottinghamshire and Hampshire have met on 141 previous occasions in first class cricket.

There have been 40 wins for Notts, 38 for Hampshire and 63 draws.

Hants have hosted the contest on 71 occasions, with matches played in Basingstoke, Bournemouth, Portsmouth and three different venues in Southampton. There was also one previous meeting, in 1957, on the Isle of Wight.

Notts have won 22 of these fixtures, most recently in 2010 when a Mark Wagh century secured a 5-wicket win.


Last Time

Nottinghamshire were heavily defeated in last season’s away match against Hampshire.

The home side built on a first innings lead of 111, with James Vince scoring 147 and Tom Alsop 99, as they posted 399 for seven declared in their second knock.

Left with a nominal victory target of 511 the visitors were dismissed for 240, with Riki Wessels scoring 69 and Steven Mullaney making 50.

Memorable Meeting

This won’t be the first time that Notts have played a championship match on the Isle of Wight.

In June 1957 they made the short sea crossing for a match which was spread across three days – Saturday, Monday and Tuesday.

Hampshire’s Barbadian opener Roy Marshall scored 107 out of a first innings score of 286 for five declared.

Notts responded with a centurion of their own; Ron Giles made 101 as the visitors pulled to within 27.

Second time around, early on the final day, the home side declared on 167 for five, setting a target of 194 for the visitors.

Derek Shackleton, one of the finest medium-pace swing bowlers of his generation, found the conditions to his liking and his six for 54 secured a home win by 80 runs.

History

1930 | The final day was never going to give much value for the admission price as the home side needed just one more run for victory. Notts took to the field in lounge suits, rather than in traditional whites, Fred Barratt and Bill Voce even wearing their overcoats. The second delivery, bowled by Arthur Carr, was hit away for four by Alex Kennedy, enabling the visitors to make a speedy getaway for their long journey home.

1966 | Nottinghamshire’s first championship match to include Sunday play also produced one of the most bizarre endings. Chasing 238 on the final day, Hampshire were 236-5 with one ball remaining. Henry Horton played the ball forward and set off for the run but appeared to deliberately kick the ball away from the fielders as he completed the single. Reports indicated it was a clear case of obstructing the field. After half an hour of deliberations, Notts captain Brian Bolus confirmed that his side had not made an appeal for such a dismissal. Hampshire, having ended the match with the scores level, were thereby awarded five extra points. Sunday’s play – day two of the match – saw spectators admitted to the ground without charge provided a scorecard was bought at the increased price of one shilling.

1999 | Nottinghamshire were dismissed for 324 on the first day of their PPP Healthcare County Championship match against Hampshire at Trent Bridge. Nothing particularly unusual about that – except the top scorer in the innings was extras with 73. Made up of 25 byes, 18 leg-byes, six no-balls and 24 wides, the contribution was the most ever recorded in a single innings against Notts.

2004 | For the first time, a championship match at Trent Bridge saw both teams pass 600 in their first innings. Hampshire made 641-4 declared, thanks to an unbeaten 301 from John Crawley and a century from Australia’s Michael Clarke. Nottinghamshire’s response was equally emphatic with David Hussey (170), Mark Ealham (113*) and Darren Bicknell (103) scoring tons of their own in a total of 612. Needless to say, the match was drawn.

2010 | Steven Mullaney scored a century on his Nottinghamshire debut, scoring an unbeaten 100 in his side’s victory.

2011 | Notts made the most sporting of gestures when visiting wicketkeeper Nic Pothas had injured himself and was unfit for the second day of the match. The home side offered and allowed their academy keeper Adeel Shafique to keep for the opposition. With approval by both umpires and the ECB, the 17-year-old kept impeccably for Hampshire for the entire morning session until replacement Michael Bates arrived.

2016 | Needing a win to retain their Division One status, Hampshire avoided relegation after pulling off an eight-wicket success, with their West Indian Test match bowler, Fidel Edwards, taking the spoils with match figures of 10 for 145.

Stats (for all first class matches between Notts & Hampshire)

Highest Team Total | Notts: 612 (Trent Bridge 2004), Hants: 714-5 dec (Southampton 2005).

Highest Individual Score | Notts: 239* CB Harris (Trent Bridge 1950), Hants: 311* JP Crawley (Southampton 2005).

Best Bowling | Notts: 9-21 TL Richmond (Trent Bridge 1922), Hants: 8-36 CJ Knott (Bournemouth 1953).

Hat-Tricks | Notts: HJ Butler (Trent Bridge 1939), Hants: CT Tremlett (Trent Bridge 2005).

Played For Them Both

Andre Adams, one of the star performers in Nottinghamshire’s 2010 county championship triumph, ended his career with a brief spell at Hampshire.

The former New Zealand international took 344 first class wickets for Notts, between 2007 and 2014.

He made three appearances for the Southampton-based side in 2015 before injury forced him out of the game.

Amongst the many other players to have enjoyed stints with both counties are: Hashim Amla, Jackson Bird, Andrew Carter, Dan Christian, Richard Logan, Michael Lumb, Kevin Pietersen, Darren Sammy, Bilal Shafayat, Will Smith, Imran Tahir, Mike Taylor and Adam Voges

Milestones

Steven Mullaney requires 69 more runs to reach 7,000 in first-class cricket.

Stuart Broad is 45 runs short of the 5,000 run landmark.

Tom Moores is 43 away from scoring 1,000 first-class runs.

Jake Ball is 80 short of his 1,000th run in first-class cricket.

Steven Mullaney is four wickets short of taking his hundredth in first-class cricket.

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