Notts again feel the heat from Hain as Warwickshire rack them up

Warwickshire ended day one of their LV= Insurance County Championship match at Trent Bridge in a strong position on 361for five after Sam Hain posted his third century of the season, sharing a fourth-wicket partnership of 171 with Dan Mousley, who made 87, after opener Alex Davies had scored 93 earlier.

Nottinghamshire have seen two sides of Hain in little more than a week following his 97 not out against them in the Vitality Blast at Edgbaston on June 3. On that occasion, he smashed eight fours and four sixes from just 52 balls but made the switch from white ball to the different qualities required for red-ball cricket look effortless in a patient innings spanning 258 minutes and 192 balls.

Having hit eight fours and four sixes and not offered a chance until then, his only regret will be that he was out inside the last four overs of the day's play for exactly 100.

On a tough day in which home attack gained late rewards for their persistence, the highlight was two wickets for Jake Ball as he returned to first-class action for the first time this season for only his third appearance in three seasons following recurrent back problems.

On the same pitch that saw Nottinghamshire pile up 662 runs batting first against Durham last September, Warwickshire's decision to bat first quickly looked the right one, its green colour proving deceptive.

Having been eased back into action in the Vitality Blast, collecting 10 wickets in three appearances, Ball marked his first red-ball appearance for almost nine months by taking a wicket in his fifth over as Rob Yates, driving somewhat loosely, was taken comfortably behind the stumps by Tom Moores, who missed the last four Championship rounds with a broken finger.

It happened to be Ball's 100th first-class wicket for Nottinghamshire but it was his side's only success in the morning session, albeit one made up of just 27 overs. Davies was troubled early on as Ball found occasional extra bounce from the pavilion end, taking a bang on his right hand for his pains, but otherwise he and Will Rhodes asserted themselves effectively as Warwickshire reached 91 at lunch.

In the event, Rhodes fell five balls into the afternoon session. Ball was again the bowler, although it was a somewhat self-inflicted dismissal by the visiting captain, who took his bat away from one that he plainly thought would miss his off stump and paid the price.

Nottinghamshire maintained an all-seam attack until 18 overs into the second session. In the absence of Liam Patterson-White, who has had a modest season to date and is currently nursing a hamstring injury, 25-year-old Calvin Harrison retained his place following his Championship debut in May and it was the tall legspinner who denied Davies what had looked a likely second century of the season.

Harrison induced a miscued drive from Davies in his third over. Presented with a tempting, loopy delivery in the next over, Davies opted to block only for the ball to evade his bat and hit him on the front boot, leg before for 93.

Incoming batter Mousley seemed prepared to go after Harrison when he hammered one down the ground for six but did not persist with the tactic and in the overs before tea there was something in the surface for the legspinner and for the offspin of Matt Montgomery, against whom Hain was lucky with an edge that just evaded first slip, albeit in an over containing three boundaries. Harrison, who had switched ends, then had Mousley and Hain in turn surviving by a whisker and Warwickshire were probably relieved to reach tea with no further casualties at 227 for 3.

Yet if the spinners were able to threaten from time to time they found it much harder to contain the fourth-wicket pair. There was no appreciable pace in the pitch and they had time to work the gaps in the field and keep the scoreboard moving in singles, a straight six in the last of Harrison's 18 overs a rare show of aggression from Hain.

To their credit, the home attack did not flag and Dane Paterson picked up the wicket of Mousley with the second new ball as the left-hander drove extravagantly and was caught behind off an inside edge, before Hain, having just completed his century, was bowled by a fine delivery from Lyndon James that squared him up and took the off stump.