Ben Slater fifty, Dane Paterson five-for keep Nottinghamshire in compelling contest with Warwickshire

A fascinating LV=Insurance County Championship game is evolving at Edgbaston where Group 1 leaders Nottinghamshire closed the second day on 173 for 3 in reply to the home side's 341.

Despite the loss of most of the second session to bad light and drizzle, all results remain possible in a compelling contest between two sides in the thick of the quest for the top two spots.

Nottinghamshire seamer Dane Paterson finished with 5 for 90 but shared his side's frustration at a merry stand of 52 between Bears last-wicket pair Liam Norwell, who was 30 not out from 37 balls, including three sixes, and Olly Hannon-Dalby with 26. They built on the diligence of Matt Lamb's 67 to assure Warwickshire of a third batting point.

Norwell then troubled Nottinghamshire with the ball, taking all the three wickets to fall, including Ben Slater for an authoritative 77.

After Warwickshire resumed on 250 for 6, Paterson quickly added to the three wickets he picked up the previous evening when Danny Briggs nicked behind and was superbly caught by wicketkeeper Tom Moores.

Lamb reached an excellent half-century from 125 balls with his sixth four, driven through the covers, but lost another partner when Craig Miles lifted Luke Fletcher to point.

With acceleration needed, Norwell got off the mark with a straight six off Fletcher but Paterson completed his five-for when Lamb edged into the cordon.

That third batting point appeared to be eluding Warwickshire when they needed five runs from the last two balls of the 110th over, from Paterson. But Hannon-Dalby nonchalantly flicked the first to the fine leg boundary and elegantly drove the next to the cover fence.

The spectators loved that and thoroughly enjoyed the 40 minutes of frolicksome batting that followed as the tail-enders frustrated the bowlers until Hannon-Dalby edged Liam Patterson-White to slip.

Nottinghamshire's reply reached six without loss at lunch and, after much interference by bad light and rain, 28 without loss at tea. Haseeb Hameed and Slater then added 72 before, second ball after another brief delay, the former left a Norwell offering that knocked out off-stump.

Norwell quickly added the scalp of Ben Duckett, lbw, and returned late in the day to end a stand of 78 in 19 overs between Slater and Joe Clarke when the former edged to wicketkeeper Michael Burgess.