Warwickshire home in on vital victory over Notts
Last updated on .From the section Counties
| LV County Championship Division One, Edgbaston |
| Close, day three: Warwickshire 574-7dec, Nottinghamshire 238 & 136-6 |
| Warwicks 6pts, Notts 2pts |
| Match scorecard |
| Live commentary |
Championship-chasing Warwickshire are homing in on a vital victory at Edgbaston after forcing Nottinghamshire to follow on.
After being bowled out by the fired-up Bears for 238, Chris Woakes taking 4-91, Notts then dismally limped to 136-6 by the close, still 200 runs adrift.
Boyd Rankin and on-loan Essex paceman Chris Wright shared the wickets as Warwickshire took control.
Alex Hales top scored with 72 in Notts' first innings and is still there on 69.
The only other Notts batsmen to emerge with any credit were Darren Bravo, who made 70 and 28, and Andre Adams, who chipped in with 34 further down the order.
A total of 15 wickets fell in the day but there was no blame attached to the pitch this time, unlike when the Bears suffered their points penalty against Worcestershire earlier in the season.
This time Nottinghamshire simply struggled against the swinging ball, on the warmest day of the match so far, as they slumped from 133-1 to 238 all out, losing their last six first-innings wickets for 54 in 19 overs.
Hales and Bravo appeared in no trouble when they added 79 for Nottinghamshire's second wicket. But they fell apart once Hales had edged to Varun Chopra at first slip.
The reigning champions, a shadow of the side that won the title a year ago, then lost five more in seven overs in an eventful final session against a disciplined attack, led by England one-day international seamer Chris Woakes, who took his season's haul to 55 and was well-supported by Rankin, Wright and Rikki Clarke.
