Dravid and Davies build commanding MCC lead
The action reverted more to type in Abu Dhabi following the opening day clatter of wickets as MCC built an imposing 410-run lead against Nottinghamshire
ESPNcricinfo staff
28-Mar-2011
MCC 218 and 300 for 5 (Dravid 81*, Davies 64, Moore 61, Peters 57) lead Nottinghamshire 108 (Kirby 5-29, Hassan 4-45) by 410 runs
Scorecard
Scorecard
The action reverted more to type in Abu Dhabi following the opening day clatter of wickets as MCC built an imposing 410-run lead against Nottinghamshire. Rahul Dravid finished the day unbeaten on 81 and added 121 for the fifth wicket with Steve Davies after earlier half-centuries from Stephen Moore and Stephen Peters.
Dravid made up for his first-innings duck and 72 of his runs came from boundaries as he spent plenty of time assessing conditions against the pink ball being used for this match. It will have been useful first-hand experience for Dravid who is also a member of the MCC Cricket Committee which is pushing forward with experiments into day/night first-class matches.
Nottinghamshire were well behind the game when they resumed on 86 for 8 and it didn't take long for MCC to wrap up the innings. Hamid Hassan bagged the final two scalps, bowling with lively pace, as he finished with 4 for 45 and will take on a more senior role in the second innings after Steve Kirby was forced out of the match with a foot injury. Kirby was replaced by Paul Muchall, an MCC Young Cricketer, and will fly back to the UK for treatment ahead of the Championship season.
MCC set about adding to their 110-run lead in solid fashion as the bowlers started to find success harder to come by. Chris Rogers (18) completed a quiet match when he was lbw to Luke Fletcher but a third-wicket stand of 106 from Moore and Peters set a strong platform.
Peters hit the first six of the match before Nottinghamshire struck back with debutant Jacob Ball taking three quick wickets including Dawid Malan for a 0 as MCC slipped to 157 for 4. However, Dravid took time to play himself in while Davies opted for a more aggressive route in a productive partnership.
Davies had hit ten boundaries when he became Fletcher's sixth wicket of the match late in the day but Dravid remained firm until the close alongside Mohammad Nabi.
