Scorecard
Nottinghamshire’s hopes of extending their winning start to the season were all but extinguished on the second day at Trent Bridge when a brilliant double-hundred from Jonathan Bairstow put Yorkshire in command.
The son of former England wicket-keeper David Bairstow powered on, to not only reach three figures for the first time but then to reach 205 before being bowled by Steven Mullaney. At that point the visitors declared their first innings closed on 534-9.
In reply Notts reached 43-0 when bad light stopped play at around 5pm.
Assessing the overall position of the match Notts’ director of cricket Mick Newell said, “Yorkshire have set it up as to how they want to win the game and we have to make sure that doesn’t happen. We’ve got to bat well – there’s the best part of 200 overs left in the game and we need to make sure we bat for all of those overs if we can.”
Bairstow, the stand-out player for his side, had been a member of the England Lions squad that toured the Caribbean under Newell’s stewardship during the early part of this year. “I’ve obviously seen him at close quarters and know what a good player he is. He’s waited a while for his first century and now has turned it into a proper score, so fair play to him.”
Under much chillier, cloudy conditions Yorkshire resumed from their overnight 291 -3 with batsmen Joe Root eleven runs away from a maiden century. Sadly for him he wasn’t to make it, falling to a catch at the wicket, from the bowling of Paul Franks. Root’s partnership with Jonathan Bairstow had produced 119 runs but before a further run was added Notts struck again with Gerard Brophy losing his off stump to a pacy delivery from Luke Fletcher.
Adil Rashid also fell cheaply, taken at slip by Neil Edwards and the bowler, Franks, had further joy when he persuaded Rich Pyrah to edge to Read.
Yorkshire had lost four wickets for 40 runs during the first hour of play but a stand of 52 between Bairstow and Ajmal Shahzad resurrected the innings. Having seen Root fall in the nervous nineties, Bairstow had no such concerns. The 21 year old hit Samit Patel for consecutive extra cover boundaries to move from 91 to 99 – then celebrated his hundred after a quickly-scampered single.
The total had moved on to 383 when the White Rose county lost their eighth wicket – when Shahzad came down the track to Patel and skied to Phillips, who took a good catch running back from mid off.
Ryan Sidebottom received a warm welcome from the home crowd and an even warmer one from his former tea-mates who allowed him to get off the mark with a 5. Mark Wagh’s shy at the stumps missed its target and went for 4 overthrows.
After lunch both batsmen settled into their respective roles – Bairstow punishing anything loose, with Sidebottom offering stoic support.
Paul Franks, looking for his first 5-wicket haul for the county since 2004, went for three consecutive boundaries to the right-hander. Bairstow’s first shot was sweetly timed, square on the offside but the other two were hugely fortunate, an outside edge over the slip cordon and then a Chinese cut past the stumps.
Two maximums into the William Clarke Stand, off Patel, enabled Bairstow to move from 132 to 144. His 150 followed, from 233 deliveries, and he responded to a message from the dressing room by noticeably increasing his strike rate.
Ben Phillips had to leave the field after a shot from Bairstow flew straight back at the bowler causing a hand injury.
The 9th wicket stand extended beyond the century mark and then the 500 was brought up but Bairstow lost the strike just before tea and had to go into the break still one short of a double hundred.
He remedied it shortly after the resumption, lofting Patel for his fifth maximum before losing his off stump to Steven Mullaney for a brilliant 205 (292 balls 24 x 4 5 x 6).
At that point, with Sidebottom 45 not out, Gale declared on 534-9.
Notts were faced with having to bat for a potential 27 overs towards the end of the day but after 8.2 overs the umpires took the players from the field due to bad light. At that stage the total was on 43-0, with Neil Edwards on 29, Mark Wagh on 2 and the remaining 12 made up from extras.
Mick Newell later confirmed that Phillips’ injury didn’t appear to be too serious. “It looks like it’s just very bad bruising”, he said. “We’re not sending him for an X-Ray and hopefully he should be OK to have a bat.”
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