Dane Paterson praised the undying persistence of the Nottinghamshire attack, after his five-wicket haul helped the hosts to a 165-run victory over Somerset at Trent Bridge.

The South African right-armer passed 500 First-Class wickets on the final day of the contest, and he feels his fellow seamers stuck to their task admirably.

“There was a bit of a skiddy nature to the pitch, so we just looked to go wicket-to-wicket and exploit the lengths that were working, and I think we were relentless as a group,” he said.

“Broady looked in good rhythm, Lyndon got his rewards, and Brett bowled unbelievably.

“We just put our heads down and went for it on that last day – even on days where we’re having to bowl more overs and have a heavier workload, we know there’s no point shying away from it.

“We learned from winning some close games from difficult positions in 2021, so it’s in our DNA as a group now – even if the tanks are empty, we have a big reserve tank to go into.

“When the going is tough, nobody backs down – and that’s such a good thing to have in a group.”

Paterson’s eight-wicket contribution in a winning cause followed his claiming of three scalps in the season-opening defeat at Taunton, but he admits to feeling that the best is yet to come in Nottinghamshire whites this summer.

“Last week I was a bit grumpy with myself for not bowling so well, and then even though I felt a bit out of rhythm at times I got a few wickets this week,” he said.

“It’s weird that sometimes you can bowl well and not get wickets, and sometimes you don’t feel in rhythm and get a five-fer.

“Getting wickets in April is always satisfying too, to get off to a good start so early in the season.

“It’s certainly not easy to reach 500 wickets either, so to tick that off is something I’m chuffed about

“I think playing in South Africa and England has helped me to get those numbers, with the way I bowl – and it’s certainly been accelerated with the past two seasons over here.

“You don't tend to think about these milestones but when they come closer, they are on your mind, so I’m happy.”

Paterson was the sole frontline seamer to play in each of Notts’ opening two County Championship clashes, with Olly Stone and Luke Fletcher making way for Stuart Broad and Brett Hutton.

But the 34-year-old is relishing the competition in the home dressing room.

“Everybody is thinking ‘who’s playing this week!?’ because it’s such a strong bowling line-up, but it’s a good thing to have,” he said.

“The guys that are coming in are quality, skilful bowlers, which is really good especially considering the number of back-to-back games we have early in the season.

“And every time someone comes in, they make a big contribution, which is quite a trend to be setting.”

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