Wagh grace brightens final day

Nottinghamshire 376 for 6 (Wagh 147, Voges 76, Brown 64) drew with Warwickshire 402 for 9 (Troughton 73*, Westwood 73, Bell 60, Fletcher 4-115)
Scorecard

Sometimes deeds speak much louder than words. When Mark Wagh left Edgbaston at the end of 2006, he did so quietly and without rancour. Underneath, however, he was disappointed. Disappointed that the club he had supported all his life had failed to live up to its potential and disappointed that he had never been fully accepted or appreciated at the place he called home for a decade.

In his recent book, the excellent Pavilion to crease... and back, Wagh delivers a brief but devastating critique of the club. Labelling it "a political monstrosity" he complains that "personal conflict, rumour mongering, territorial disputes and back stabbing" were the order of the day.

In the end he tired of it. Turning his back on a lucrative contract and a benefit season, he moved on and found acceptance at Trent Bridge. As Nottinghamshire's leading championship run-scorer in both of the last two seasons, it is a move that must be considered a success.

Here, in his first innings championship innings since leaving Edgbaston, he made his point even more eloquently. By compiling an elegant, graceful century in just 114 deliveries, Wagh not only illustrated his own quality, but laid bare the limitations of the host's attack.

Studded with lovely cuts, drives and glances, Wagh also lofted James Anyon and Jeetan Patel for straight sixes and pulled another off Jonathan Trott. There were times when his batting was almost disdainful.

Watching this innings reinforced the impression that no-one in English cricket - not Bopara, not Pietersen and not Bell - times the ball as sweetly. He was recently described by Robert Brooke, the eminent historian and co-founder of the Association of Cricket Statisticians, as "the most joyous and magical batsmen" he had seen in watching 50 years of cricket at Edgbaston. Bearing in mind some of those who have played there over the years - Lara, Kanhai, Amiss, Kallicharran, Bell etc - those are strong words indeed.

Few would disagree, however. While you could rely on Amiss' batting, you could fall in love with Wagh's. While you'd pick Bell for pragmatism, you'd pick Wagh for pleasure. His cover drive flows with a grace granted to very few, while his legside play drew whistles of admiration from Lara. At its best, Wagh's batting is quite beautiful. And Warwickshire really aren't so strong a side that they can let such talent slip through their fingers.

Perhaps Wagh should have achieved more. This was the 25th first-class century of a career that has included a championship winners' medal for Warwickshire in 2004. Yet the England cap that seemed inevitable when he first burst onto the scene has eluded him. Now aged 32, the time has surely gone.

Had injury not intervened, things might have been different. At the start of the 2002 season, after a successful winter in England's academy squad, Wagh was right on the brink. Sadly a serious injury to his knee ligaments ruled him out for some months and the chance never came again.

His form has fluctuated, too. Before this performance, he had not passed 19 in four previous championship innings this season and, despite scoring more runs than any of his team-mates in the Friends Provident Trophy, he was omitted from Nottinghamshire's Twenty20 side.

This innings was not without it streaky moments. On 35 he flashed Neil Carter through vacant third slip and on 63 he swept Patel into Trott at short-leg. He didn't give a chance until after he had reached 100, however, when the out of sorts Chris Woakes dropped him at long-on.

Wagh's batting lit up what could have been a tedious day. With only bonus points to contest, this match could have descended into farce, but enterprising batting ensured decent entertainment and, but for bad light, would surely have brought full batting points for the visitors.

They did not start well. Shafayat gloved a superb, rearing bouncer from Anyon before Jefferson top-edged a slog-sweep and Patel was caught down the leg-side attempting to pull. But Adam Voges and the belligerent Ali Brown both contributed muscular half-centuries, helping Wagh add 148 and 124 respectively. Voges has now made a half-century in all five championship innings this season (though he has not made a century for 55 innings) while Brown has made three 50s in five innings.

Voges finally fell, edging a cut, before Wagh feathered an attempted hook and Brown was run out through a brilliant pick-up and direct hit from Ambrose.

Earlier, Warwickshire declared immediately after securing their fifth batting bonus point. Despite losing Troughton to a fine yorker and Woakes to a catch at cover, the final pair of Anyon and Patel chipped out the 16 runs required to earn full batting bonus points.

So, both teams take 11 points from the game. That was enough to take Nottinghamshire back to the top of the table and consolidate Warwickshire's position in the middle of the pack. Whether they can stay there remains to be seen. Although they have now stretched their unbeaten championship run to an admirable 20 matches, they are not winning many of them. Fifteen of those games have been drawn and they have won only once at Edgbaston since April 2007.

Revealingly, they also have fewer bowling bonus points than any other team in either division. It is yet to be seen whether a side can remain in the top division without winning a game; we may well find out.