Pakistan’s Mohammad Abbas was the pick with the ball for Nottinghamshire, claiming six for 45 in a truly dominant display. Consequently, Yorkshire folded for a paltry 51 in their first innings. The match, taking place at Trent Bridge, saw Yorkshire bowled out for 159 in response to Nottinghamshire’s first-innings total of 228. Notts have established a formidable first-innings advantage of 296 runs. This commanding advantage only prepares the stage for an exciting finish to the match on Tuesday.
Abbas’s extraordinary bowling too was of course key in ripping through the entire Yorkshire batting order. He had his fourth and fifth wickets in consecutive balls, reinforcing the complete dominance he commanded on the pitch. With this performance, Abbas reached the landmark of his 49th career first-class haul of five or more wickets. He has consistently shown exceptional talent for influencing games in a big way.
Yorkshire had a poor day with the bat, losing regular wickets. At one stage, they crumbled to a mere 15 runs for 4 wickets. Dillon Pennington and Brett Hutton both claimed two wickets apiece, key to the pressure which compounded the Yorkshire batsmen. Yorkshire’s top performer was Dawid Malan, who made a rapid 64 from 45 deliveries. He did everything he could to keep the innings in control, but got no help from those around him.
As the innings wore on, Malan put together a short stand with nightwatchman Jack White. Combined, they added 37 runs for the fifth wicket. It wasn’t enough to save Yorkshire from stumbling short of a very get-able target. Haseeb Hameed, 33 for Yorkshire, could not turn a decent start into a big score, either.
In response, Nottinghamshire’s second innings featured an attack-minded opening from Ben Slater and Joe Clarke. At the crease, Slater made a top-notch century making 78 runs off 125 balls and Clarke finished up with 73 runs off 92 balls not out. Such was their contribution that Nottinghamshire reached an impressive 227 for 3 at the completion of their second innings.
Haseeb Hameed, the Nottinghamshire captain, initially opened up with Slater. Together, they complemented each other to establish an exemplary partnership, as the duo slammed 73 runs in only 16 overs for the first wicket. That jump-out made way for an early lead that would turn into a dominant performance on the night. Nottinghamshire already have a huge advantage and are putting Yorkshire under an increasingly intimidating challenge.
Yorkshire have been battling with their batting form all season long. In an entire year, across seven matches in 2025, they have struggled to register first-innings totals of 250+, achieving the feat just thrice. Such disparity has left many supporters worrying about their competitive potential against one mammoth opponent such as Nottinghamshire.
As the match moves towards the final stages of play, Nottinghamshire seem to be well on their way to victory. They have really, really asserted their control when talking about home conditions, the bowlers and the batsmen equally playing such pivotal roles to the various outcomes. The return to form of Mohammad Abbas has been a timely boost for Nottinghamshire.
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