County DIV1 2026, NOT vs WAR 13th Match Report, 24 – 27 April 2026

Nottinghamshire 264 for 8 (Clarke 94, Duckett 62) route Warwickshire 459 (Barnard 165, Stand 70, Tong 5-124) by 195 runs

Earlier, a ninth-wicket partnership of 119 between Ed Barnard and Michael Booth enabled Warwickshire, 375 for eight overnight, to tighten their grip on the defending champions and take maximum batting points for good measure.

Barnard, who batted superbly to rescue Warwickshire from 179 for six on Friday, was out for 165, Booth hitting a career-best 70. England’s Josh Tongue failed to add to his wickets and finished with five for 124. Booth later took three for 59 with the ball.

The pair made for a disappointing morning for the home side, who were hoping to seal the last two Warwickshire wickets in quick time. They looked to Tong to finish the job, but the only damage he could do this time was to his own figures.

Barnard, who resumed on 134, soon smashed his former Worcestershire team-mate for three boundaries in quick succession. He brought up his 150 off 202 balls, and celebrated with a haul for six and a scorn for four. This gave Warwickshire a fourth wicket, and the momentum to chase a fifth.

Thanks to Booth, they secured it. With Tongue relieved after conceding 33 in five overs, the 25-year-old Zimbabwean faced Pennington and Lyndon James. Undaunted by needing 26 runs just two overs short of the bonus point cut-off, he smashed two fours and three sixes to sail past his previous best of 58. He clinched the extra run off the last ball of the 110th over, a six over that cleared the roof of the Larwood and Voce Stand.

James, the bowler on the receiving end of that stroke, had the last word, bowling both Booth and Barnard, the latter dragging one on, but Nottinghamshire faced an uphill task to stay in the game, not helped by losing two early wickets in their reply, one either side of lunch.

Captain Haseeb Hameed, dismissed for 0 and 2 against Glamorgan here a fortnight ago, again perished without scoring when Chris Woakes straightened one enough to beat his attempt to work the ball through the middle of the wicket.

Opener Ben Slater got off to a flying start, only to misjudge a ball cornered by Bamber four overs after the break, bowled without offering a shot.

Duckett and Clarke rebuild. The England left-hander survived some early pressure against Bamber and Woakes but came through unscathed. Duckett’s progress has been relatively measured, though no less pleasing to the eye for that. He tallied eight boundaries by reaching fifty off 84 balls.

Clarke’s half-century followed soon after. As their partnership extended into three figures, the pair looked set to lay the foundation for a sizeable Nottinghamshire response.

Yet Duckett was undone just before tea. After all six of their seamers rotated, Warwickshire rotated almost as a token gesture. But it worked when Duckett, after defending five balls from off-spinner Rob Yates, took on the sixth, which he badly missed against Woakes at mid-on.

The setback was compounded immediately after tea when Booth left new man Jack Haynes on the floor with his off stump.

Surviving a tough 60, Clarke added 67 with Kyle Verreynne and looked set to see out the day only to be trapped at leg-side, catching a short ball from Booth at deep square, who then removed Pennington lbw before Patterson-White hit Webster to Yates at slip.