Nottinghamshire took a giant stride towards winning their sixth County Championship and a second in six seasons after Lancashire's desperate attempt to keep their own outside chance alive offered Chris Read's side a route to victory that they were able to
It will almost certainly need a deal to be struck between Lancashire and Nottinghamshire to force a positive result in this match after the whole of the third day was lost to rain
Given that rivals Yorkshire and Somerset may have to settle for draws in their respective matches, Division One leaders Nottinghamshire have an opportunity to make a decisive break in the title race here
All was going well for Lancashire until the weather, which they customarily regard as the enemy at this time of year, exposed suspect concentration with a capricious burst of late-evening sunshine
