By James O'Brien
Riki Wessels warmed up for the NatWest T20 Blast with a swashbuckling 158 from 152 balls to inspire Nottinghamshire to victory by an innings and 10 runs against his former club Northamptonshire in their rain-affected LV= County Championship Division One match.
Wessels hit seven sixes in the morning session at Trent Bridge and received good support from Ajmal Shahzad as Notts comfortably claimed maximum batting bonus points after moving from their overnight total of 259 for five to 409 for eight declared.
Shahzad then took 4-46 with the ball and Peter Siddle weighed in with 4-61 as Northants were bowled out for 151.
Wessels, dropped by Andrew Hall yesterday with just 22 to his name, and Chris Read set the tone for an entertaining morning with aerial shots in the early overs.
Wessels hit Hall over long-on for six to move to 98 but lost Read when the wicketkeeper-batsman found Rob Newton on the square-leg boundary to depart for 31 and give Hall his second wicket.
Siddle was caught at first slip by Hall off James Middlebrook moments after Wessels reached his 15th career hundred and that brought Shahzad to the crease.
Century for @RikiWessels from 123 balls, 2 sixes and 12 fours #NottsvNhants
— Nottinghamshire CCC (@TrentBridge) May 14, 2014
Wessels accelerated his scoring and his partner tried to keep pace as the pair raced to their fifty partnership from only 25 balls.
The middle-order batsman was hitting sixes for fun and rocketed from 100 to 150 in just 20 deliveries, a purple patch which included three leg-side maximums in as many balls off Hall.
The century stand between Wessels and Shahzad came up in 47 balls before Notts declared after the former was caught at long-on by Steven Crook off Muhammad Azhar Ullah, leaving Shahzad unbeaten on 36 from 25 deliveries.
Northamptonshire were given a tricky period to survive before lunch and had made good progress until Shahzad trapped Middlebrook in front in the penultimate over with the score on 24.
Siddle saw an edge from David Sales fall just short of the slips after the interval but the Australian was celebrating the very next ball as Stephen Peters chipped straight to Andre Adams at square-leg.
Sales was the next man to go and in spectacular fashion as Siddle uprooted his middle stump through the gate.
Wicket! Ajmal Shahzad collects his fourth, trapping Chambers LBW. Northants 151 all out, notts win by an innings and 10 runs #NottsvNhants
— Nottinghamshire CCC (@TrentBridge) May 14, 2014
Siddle switched to around the wicket to Matthew Spriegel and picked up a deserved third scalp when the Northants number four played across a straight delivery and was given out lbw.
Newton and Hall temporarily stemmed the flow of wickets with a partnership of 30, which came to an end when the former lobbed a simple return catch to Adams as he looked to turn the ball into the leg side.
Siddle accounted for Ben Duckett in the same fashion at the second attempt to leave Northamptonshire six down for 105 at tea.
Shahzad lured Hall into playing the first ball of the evening session and had him caught behind by Read for 27 before dismantling David Murphy's stumps with a brilliant yorker two deliveries later.
Samit Patel's first ball of the innings was a full toss but it was hit straight back to him by Crook, who had frustrated Notts with 23 alongside Maurice Chambers.
Shahzad ended Chambers' resistance by pinning him in front from around the wicket to complete Nottinghamshire's second win of the season.