Joe Clarke hundred lifts Notts after Warwickshire enforce follow-on

Joe Clarke posted his first century in first-class cricket since September 2021 but Warwickshire remain favourites to complete the fourth win of their LV= Insurance County Championship season and stay in contention for the Division One title.

Nottinghamshire were following on after being bowled out for just 155 in reply to Warwickshire's 571 for 9 declared but despite Clarke's impressive performance they remained 149 runs behind at the close of the third day at 267 for 4 and a second new ball available to the visiting bowlers after just two more overs.

Clarke finished unbeaten on 119 from 178 balls, having batted for almost four hours and not given a chance, picking up 22 boundaries. Skipper Steven Mullaney was not out on 37 in an unbroken fifth-wicket stand worth 81 yet even with the pitch flattening out, Warwickshire will be disappointed not to turn their dominance over the first three days into a victory.

Earlier, Pakistan quick Hasan Ali had taken three for 30 and Will Rhodes and Chris Rushworth two wickets each as Nottinghamshire were dismissed in 56 overs to trail by 416 on first innings.

Having left the field to rumbles of thunder and lightning flashes on Monday evening, Nottinghamshire emerged in glorious sunshine for day three having been urged to fight for their survival, despite being five down for 82, still 489 runs behind. Yet 24 overs and two balls later, they were being asked to follow on.

Mullaney, not out with Tom Moores overnight, was well caught at short midwicket at the end of the fifth full over of the day, a third victim for Hasan. Moores and Calvin Harrison attacked defiantly before departing in consecutive overs. Moores was bowled driving loosely - a first wicket of the season for skipper Rhodes - and Harrison, somewhat inevitably after being tempted by several short deliveries on the leg side, miscued one to long leg.

Rhodes picked up his second when Jake Ball fended a short ball to first slip and one over of spin from Danny Briggs was enough to tempt last man Dane Paterson to put one down the throat of long-off.

There was an argument for Rhodes not enforcing the follow-on, given the rising heat and the effort put in by his bowlers to staunch any threat of a Nottinghamshire recovery. If discussed it was rejected, although he might have thought about it again as openers Ben Slater and Haseeb Hameed put on 61 without too many alarms.

But as in the first innings, the introduction of Hasan changed the picture. Hameed, misreading a ball angled in by the Pakistan quick, lost his off stump offering no shot. Two balls later, new man Matt Montgomery was hit in front, beaten for pace.

Clarke, patient at first, hit three lovely straight drives to the boundary off Rhodes but just as it seemed he and Slater might assert themselves and get the innings back on an even keel, the captain brought Briggs on for Hasan at the pavilion end and Slater, perhaps misjudging the bounce, spooned the ball tamely to short midwicket.

Responsibility now sat heavily on Clarke, who passed his first test alongside Lyndon James by ensuring Nottinghamshire reached tea with no more casualties. By then he was on 53 and though 40 of them had come in boundaries he had taken them without unnecessary risk.

James, by contrast, was content simply to block, and the combination worked well as Clarke - helped by four boundaries in one over off the medium pace of Rhodes - moved into the 80s for the first time this season until James, having tucked one away nicely through midwicket for only his third boundary in an hour and three-quarters at the crease, was drawn into playing a ball from Rushworth that took the edge and had him caught at first slip. The fourth-wicket partnership had added exactly 100, easily the biggest of the match for Nottinghamshire, although the deficit remained a daunting 230 runs.

Clarke, who had gone past fifty eight times since his 109 against Yorkshire in the final fixture of the 2021 season without being able to convert, picked up a couple more boundaries off Oliver Hannon-Dalby to move into the 90s but looked nervous as he edged closer to three figures and when he drove Hasan through extra cover to reach the milestone with his 19th boundary it prompted no more than a low-key celebration, perhaps acknowledging that his side still had much to do to save the game.