Nottinghamshire begin their 2012 LV= County Championship programme at Trent Bridge on Thursday, with Worcestershire providing the opposition.

It will be the 64th time the two sides have met with Notts having the home advantage, with all but six of the meetings taking place at Trent Bridge Three were played at Elm Avenue,Newark, two at the Town Ground, Worksop and the 1980 clash actually took place out of the county, at Cleethorpes.

Notts have triumphed in 26 of the previous clashes, with Worcestershire winning 16, ten being drawn and the 1993 encounter finishing in a tie – the only one in Nottinghamshire’s history.

The first meeting was back in 1921, so it is perhaps surprising that the visitors weren’t successful until 1960 when they skittled Notts out for 113 on their way to winning by an innings.

Worcestershire’s last win at Trent Bridge came in 2000, in a game that was dominated by their outstanding overseas player, Glenn McGrath.

The Australian took ten wickets in the contest, including 8-86 in the first innings, although there was a long wait between the seventh and eighth wicket.

Usman Afzaal, with an unbeaten 151, and AJ Harris with 39, put on 152 for the tenth wicket – equalling the Nottinghamshire record for the final pair.

They had drawn level with the 152 put on by E B Alletson and W Rileyachieved against Sussex at Hove in 1911, when Harris went back to McGrath and trod on his own stumps.

Last season the two matches were split, with each county winning at their own headquarters. At Trent Bridge Notts were set 262 to win and got there with only three wickets remaining.

Worcestershire chased down 254 at New Road to inflict a 6-wicket defeat upon Chris Read’s side, in a match that saw Riki Wessels make his Notts debut and also saw Mark Wagh make the final appearance of his career.

The highest score made by a Notts batsman in the home fixtures was the unbeaten 243 that Reg Simpson compiled in 1950, with Harold Larwood’s 8-33 in 1930 being the best bowling figures.

Larwood always enjoyed his matches against Worcestershire. Home and away, he took a total of 110 wickets against them at just 10 runs apiece – a truly phenomenal success rate.

Since 2000, centurions in the Trent Bridge fixture have been Usman Afazaal, Greg Blewett, Darren Bicknell, Bilal Shafayat and Chris Read for Notts, with David Leatherdale (twice), Graeme Hick, Steve Rhodes, Steven Davies and Alex Kervezee all reaching three figures for the Pears.

In each of the last three seasons Notts have played their opening championship fixture at home and won them all, against Hampshire last year, Kent in 2010 and this week’s opponents, Worcestershire, in 2009.