Six-time County Championship winners Nottinghamshire celebrated their promotion to Division One of the County Championships after bringing up a dominant victory over Durham as they were confirmed as Division Two Champions.
An incredible batting display in the first innings, in which four batsmen scored hundreds, followed by some brilliant bowling, meant that the Notts confirmed their promotion to the first division. Elsewhere, disappointment took over Yorkshire, who were relegated to the second division, as they suffered a thrilling loss to Gloucestershire. Yorkshire faltered in a low-scoring encounter, falling 18 runs short, chasing a target of 241.
Nottinghamshire had a perfect display in all departments, scoring a mammoth 662/5 in the first innings, on the back of hundreds from Haseeb Hameed, Matthew Montgomery, and Lyndon James, before captain Steven Mullaney joined the party with a ferocious 111-ball 136, including ten boundaries and seven maximums.
With the ball, Liam Patterson-White, Dane Paterson, and stalwart bowler Stuart Broad were on top of their game, as they did not allow the Durham batsmen a moment’s respite, securing victory by a huge margin of 462 runs. The final day at Trent Bridge was hardly utilised as Nottingham brushed aside the seven remaining Durham batsmen to be crowned champions of Division Two.
Favourites heading into the season, Nottingham suffered only two losses, to Glamorgan back in April and to Worcestershire last week. Out-of-favour English opener Haseeb Hameed had a fantastic season, amassing 1,235 runs in the Championship, including 164 in the final across two innings. Ben Duckett also crossed the 1,000-run mark, while skipper Mullaney also had a brilliant season with 993 runs to his name.
“I’m relieved, emotional and very proud. After the adversity we went through in not winning a red ball game for almost three years and then the disappointment of starting this year in Division Two after finishing third in last year’s format, it feels all worthwhile,”
Mullaney said after his side’s victory.
