County Championship 2023. Division 1. Somerset v Nottinghamshire. 25^th,26^th, 27^th and 28^th June. Taunton.

Somerset. T.A. Lammonby, S.R. Dickson, T.B. Abell (c), G.A. Bartlett, T. Kohler-Cadmore, J.E.K. Rew (w), K.L. Aldridge, C. Overton, J.H. Davey, M.J. Henry, S. Bashir.

Nottinghamshire. B.T. Slater, H. Hameed, M. Montgomery, J.M. Clarke, L.W. James, S.J. Mullaney (c), T.J. Moores (w), M. Carter, B.A. Hutton, J.T. Ball, D. Paterson.

Toss. Somerset. Elected to bat.

First day 25th June – All out before tea

As at Chelmsford two weeks before, this match began with a one-minute silence for the three people murdered in a terrorist act in Nottingham while the Chelmsford match was in progress. Two weeks on, the silence was as intense as the Essex one had been the day after the event. Two of the victims were students, one with connections to Somerset CCC and one with previous connections to Essex CCC.

It was another very hot start to a day of cricket, and the stands were drenched in sunshine. The crowd was concentrated in the Trescothick Pavilion and the Lord Ian Botham Stand, the only covered sections of seating in the ground. Despite the summer heat of the weeks before, unlike the desert-like appearance of Chelmsford, the Taunton outfield, apart from a patch in front of the Colin Atkinson Pavilion, seemed an oasis of green. There was a tinge of green in the pitch too which had made it an ‘interesting’ toss to win, and it soon became apparent that the ball was moving off the pitch. There was an upbeat atmosphere, perhaps lifted by the exceptional win over Gloucestershire in the T20 encounter on the Friday before when, after an astonishing innings from Will Smeed of 78 from 42 balls, Ben Green and Kasey Aldridge had virtually taken Somerset home with a sixth wicket partnership of 48 in five overs before Craig Overton had put the match beyond doubt.

Somerset won the toss and elected to bat, although it cannot have been a straightforward decision, and it soon became apparent that batting would not be a simple matter. But first, Tom Lammonby drove Jake through the on side to the Colin Atkinson Pavilion for four. “Shot!” someone said, for Lammonby appeared to have exerted no effort at all in playing an immaculate stroke. It was a false dawn. Lammonby offered a straight bat to the next ball, it moved away, the movement clearly visible from the top of the Trescothick Pavilion, and the ball missed the edge of the bat by the proverbial coat of varnish. In the next over, Brett Hutton, from the Trescothick Pavilion End, beat Sean Dickson and let forth a huge, if unsuccessful, leg before wicket appeal. Dickson left the next ball, full and perhaps targeting a fourth stump. It cut in and clipped the off stump. Somerset 9 for 1. Dickson 1.

And then, more of the same. Tom Abell, in early again and batting well out of his crease, drove his second ball from Hutton classically through the on side to the Ondaatje Stand for four. Hutton’s next ball pitched just outside off, cut in by enough to miss leg, and defeated Abell, striking him on the pad as he was forced back. The ball had done too much to warrant an appeal but was a disconcerting watch for a Somerset supporter in the top of the Trescothick Pavilion. Lammonby continued to attack. A square cut to the long Somerset Stand boundary off Ball and a backfoot cover drive to the Ondaatje boundary off Hutton to the fore as he added 14 runs in three overs before a defensive push to Hutton edged the ball straight into the hands of Joe Clarke at first slip. Somerset 34 for 2. Lammonby out for 24 in half an hour, and Somerset once again in familiar territory, not helped by conditions producing deliveries that could not be trusted.

Now came George Bartlett, attacking from the start as is his way, his first ball racing from a square drive to the Somerset Stand. Dane Paterson immediately rushed him into a defensive push from which he edged the ball between first and second slip, low but perfectly catchable by either. Fortunately for Bartlett, neither moved until the ball was on its way to the boundary with each fielder bent over with face, together with that of Paterson, etched in wry smiles. An extra cover drive off Paterson soon followed, crossing the boundary in front of the Colin Atkinson Pavilion scoreboard. It was a typical start to a Bartlett innings. And then, to Hutton, he left a ball from outside off stump and was palpably leg before wicket. “That cut in quite a bit,” someone said. A replay shows that to have been something of an understatement, Bartlett being struck in front of middle. Somerset 48 for 3. Bartlett 13 in a quarter of an hour.

The pattern of the innings was now set, Tom Kohler-Cadmore playing and missing at his first ball. He too was stepping out of his crease to play and Abell, despite his forward stance, was beaten twice in two balls by Paterson. “We need a captain’s innings,” someone said, as if he were a schoolteacher directing his comment an errant student. As if in response, Abell clipped Hutton square to the Caddick Pavilion boundary. Then, as the morning entered its second hour, batting began to looked a less precarious occupation and the crowd began to relax. Kohler-Cadmore, seemed to have decided to hit Somerset out of trouble, or to play a typical Kohler-Cadmore innings. He hooked Paterson, straight drove Ball to the Trescothick Pavilion and then took two more boundaries in an over from Ball, one a spectacular square drive to the long Somerset Stand boundary. Nottinghamshire introduced Matt Carter’s off spin at the River End for the 22^nd over of the innings. Abell welcomed him back to Taunton with a reverse sweep which produced an ungainly, if safe, loop through backward point for four and Somerset had added 29 in six overs.

Carter has a curious record. He has played only 15 Championship matches since his first, against Somerset at Taunton in 2015, five of which have been against Somerset, four of those at Taunton. The fifth, played at Trent Bridge in 2018, is the only Championship match he has played on his home ground. Abell shaped to drive the first ball of Carter’s second over, was deceived in the flight and, as the ball almost yorked him, spooned as simple a catch to Steven Mullaney at slip as you are likely to see in a first-class match. The Carter hoodoo had struck again. Somerset 88 for 4. Abell 19 in an hour and a quarter. Kohler-Cadmore now proceeded to treat Carter as he had treated most bowlers since coming to Taunton and lofted him over wide mid-off and across the Colin Atkinson Pavilion boundary for six before Somerset reached lunch on 106 for 4.

My lunchtime circumnavigation led to conversation in the shade under the Lord Ian Botham Stand. More than one person thought they saw something in Shoaib Bashir after his sterling performance at Chelmsford. One even talked of England potential which is a brave call after just one first-class wicket. On Gimblett’s Hill, the talk was of the close encounter with Gloucestershire and of Smeed’s innings in the T20 match of two days before. Most had thought Somerset were going to lose until the very end when Overton had come in after the earlier cricketing heroics of Smeed, Green and Aldridge and lifted that ball into the Somerset Stand to seal the game. And then, back to the matter in hand.

Almost immediately after lunch, the Carter jinx struck again. James Rew came forward with the straightest of bats, connected with the inside edge and the ball looped gently into the on side. Matthew Montgomery at short leg, dived to his right and caught the ball millimetres above the grass. It was a close-run thing, but there was no doubt about the catch. Somerset 110 for 5. Rew 10 in nearly half an hour. Off the first ball of the next over, Kohler-Cadmore attempted to clip Paterson square, missed and was struck on the pad directly in front of his middle stump. Somerset 110 for 6. Kohler-Cadmore 38 in an hour and a quarter.

Still Somerset attacked. Three boundaries came in three overs from Kasey Aldridge. Two of them were swept off Carter and one, a stunning straight drive to the Trescothick Pavilion boundary off Paterson, brought a shout of, “Shot!” But when Craig Overton played defensively to Paterson the ball flew low to the right of Carter at second slip. He dived, got a hand under the ball from where it popped up for Clarke, diving behind Carter from first slip, caught it. Somerset 124 for 7. Overton one. When Josh Davey was leg before wicket for four for Carter’s third wicket, Somerset’s hopes on electing to bat had slid to 129 for 8. It was a very quiet top of the Trescothick Pavilion, the intensity of the quiet emphasised all the more by the occasional bout of isolated chatter, so incongruous did it seem. Aldridge and Matt Henry salvaged something from the wreckage, adding 21, with two more boundaries to Aldridge, before Henry was bowled for seven trying to drive Hutton. And finally, a reverse sweep from Aldridge against Carter cleared the Caddick Pavilion boundary before Aldridge was caught behind off Hutton trying to loft a ball, pitched well wide of off stump, over long on, and Somerset were all out nearly an hour before tea on the first day. Somerset 163. Aldridge 35.

By tea, Somerset had hit back with the wicket of Haseeb Hameed, bowled by Henry to a huge cheer. Hameed had batted 25 minutes without scoring a run and Nottinghamshire were 8 for 1 in the eighth over, six of which had come off the first, from Overton. It had been an intensly defensive partnership from Hameed and Ben Slater, with Overton once beating Slater and then forcing an inside edge which passed excruciatingly close to the stumps. Hameed had been beaten at least twice by Henry too, once to gasps, before he was finally out. By tea Nottinghamshire had struggled to 23 for 1 from 13 overs with Slater having scored 19 of them including two square drives in an over to the Caddick Pavilion off Overton, Henry having bowled five furious overs for one run and the wicket of Hameed.

After the heat of the morning, the afternoon session had been played under light grey cloud floating in from the Brendon Hills to the west, but by the time the players emerged after tea, the grey had been replaced by blue sky and cotton wool white clouds. It seemed perfect weather for batting. But still the Somerset bowlers bowlers pressed Nottinghamshire with only 23 runs coming from the first ten overs with the bat was still being beaten. Against the flow, Montgomery found the boundary once and the left-handed Slater three times including two off successive balls from Overton, both past point. It was tight cricket, and the tension could be felt. But, crucially, in terms of the state of the match, Nottinghamshire had still lost only one wicket, and the Somerset lead was dropping towards a hundred.

After Overton had bowled a bouncer to Montgomery which cleared Rew, was called a no ball and added another four runs when it reached the Trescothick Pavilion a plea of, “We need a wicket don’t we,” was heard. When Montgomery cut Aldridge twice in two balls, once fine to the Lord Ian Botham Stand and once squarer to the Garner Gates, and Aldridge followed up with a no ball Nottinghamshire were 67 for 1. That was just 96 behind and the plea might have been heard again but the crowd was expressing its feelings by becoming ever quieter.

The crowd were beginning to drift away too, the usual post-tea departures perhaps, but a four driven by Montgomery through the on side to the Ondaatje boundary off Aldridge did nothing to dissuade them. And then a change. Aldridge forced an inside edge from Montgomery. It ran for four but missed the stumps by a whisker to gasps of disappointment. And then, the breakthrough. Montgomery connected with the inside edge again, but this time the ball struck the stumps and that brought a relieved cheer. The score was 79 for 2 and Somerset’s lead had fallen to 84, but a Nottinghamshire stand of 71 had been broken. Shoaib Bashir’s off spin had already been introduced to the attack. He suffered a boundary from Clarke, but in his second over he speared in a flat delivery on leg stump, struck Clarke on the pad and Nottinghamshire were 94 for 3. Clarke 12. Somerset lead 69. It was Only Bashir’s second Championship wicket, but Clarke had looked to be in good touch and his departure began to kindle hope for Somerset.

Three overs later, another chance for Somerset. Henry bowled to Slater, Slater edged, and the ball flew at catchable height between Abell at first slip and Rew. Neither moved, there were gasps from all around, and four runs resulted. Then, three balls later, Lyndon James, who had replaced Clarke, tried to keep out a ball threatening his off stump but only connected with the edge. The ball flew low and straight at Abell’s feet. This time there was no mistake. Abell reached down as if he had dropped his keys and came up with the ball to huge cheers from the remaining crowd. Nottinghamshire 105 for 4. James nought. Somerset’s lead had shrunk to 58, but three wickets had come in seven overs for 26 runs and the crowd was buzzing like a hornet’s nest poked with a stick.

The hornets had calmed somewhat by the close as Slater and Steven Mullaney first steadied things for Nottinghamshire and then struck Bashir for two fours and a six in an over. The six, from Mullaney, was slightly miscued off a straight drive aimed at the Lord Ian Botham Stand sightscreen but ended up clearing the boundary in front of the Colin Atkinson Pavilion by some distance. As the players came off, Nottinghamshire were just 18 runs behind with six wickets in hand and an uphill struggle for Somerset was in prospect for the second day.

Close. Somerset 163 (B.A. Hutton 5-34, M. Carter 3-43). Nottinghamshire 145 for 4. Nottinghamshire trail by 18 runs with six first innings wickets standing.