Nottinghamshire bat themselves into strong position against Somerset
Rothesay County Championship. day three: Nottinghamshire 509 lead Somerset 379 & 4-1 by 126 runs
Jack Haynes hit his third Rothesay County Championship century of the season to lead Division One leaders Nottinghamshire into a strong position on the third day of the match with Somerset at the Cooper Associates Ground, Taunton, writes Richard Latham, ECB Reporters' Network.
Advertisement
Starting the day on 214 for three in reply to their opponents' first innings score of 379, the visitors ran up 509 all out, Haynes leading the way with a career-best 157, while Ben Slater fell early for 124, Ishan Kishan made 77 and Lyndon James 66.
Jack Leach ended a tough day for Somerset's bowlers on an unhelpful pitch with hugely creditable figures of six for 121 from 53.2 overs, displaying exemplary accuracy as Notts steadily built a lead of 130. The hosts had to face one over before stumps and closed on four for one, nightwatchman Matt Henry bowled by Patterson-White's final delivery.
Unbeaten on 34 overnight, Haynes' hundred occupied 176 balls and featured 11 fours and a six. It was just the innings his side required to first stave off any prospect of a significant first innings deficit and then build what could prove a match-winning advantage.
Leach opened Somerset's attack at the start of play, bowling in tandem with off-spinner Archie Vaughan, and struck an early blow when Slater, having added only eight to his overnight score, aimed a back-foot forcing shot and edged a catch to wicketkeeper James Rew. It proved Somerset's only success before lunch, despite taking the second new ball at 238 for four.
Advertisement
Haynes went to a 92-ball fifty and found a more aggressive partner in Kishan, who quickly dispatched a delivery from Matt Henry over fine leg for six with a vicious pull shot to bring 250 up. On 60, Haynes survived a confident shout for a catch behind off Leach, but it was a rare moment of alarm for Notts as they closed in on Somerset's total.
By lunch, the scoreboard read 322 for four, Kishan having just moved to a half-century off 83 balls, with 4 fours and 2 sixes. The deficit was down to 57 and Haynes was looking rock solid on 81.
The pattern continued in the afternoon session, Haynes pulling a boundary off Vaughan to bring up the century partnership. Somerset then had two difficult chances to make a much-needed breakthrough as Kishan offered low diving chances to wicketkeeper Rew down the leg side off Kasey Aldridge and Craig Overton at slip off Vaughan.
Notts looked set to collect a third batting point when moving to 347 for four with five balls remaining of the 110th over, but Aldridge prevented Kishan from scoring from any of them. It was a minor setback as Haynes went to his eighth first class hundred, and third of the season, with a boundary off a leg-side full toss from Aldridge.
Advertisement
The fifth-wicket stand was worth 138 when Kishan edged a delivery from Leach onto his front pad and presented a straightforward catch to Tom Abell at short-leg. The Indian wicketkeeper had faced 128 balls and increased his boundary count to 8 fours and 2 sixes.
James had a scare with only a single to his same when edging Leach through the legs of wicketkeeper Rew standing up to the stumps. That was as good as it got for Somerset as tea was taken with Notts 431 for five and leading by 52 runs.
The final session saw James go to fifty off 87 balls, with 7 fours, before Haynes brought up his maiden 150, having faced 287 deliveries and struck 15 fours and 2 sixes. Their century stand followed as Somerset continued to toil in the warm sunshine.
Haynes finally fell lbw trying to sweep Leach with the lead just short of 100. Liam Patterson-White was then stumped pushing forward to Vaughan before the tireless Leach made it a five-for, turning a ball from on leg stump to force Brett Hutton to edge to slip.
Farhan Ahmed departed to Vaughan for a duck and James edged a drive off Leach to slip, but by then it was Nottinghamshire's highest ever total at Taunton.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
2 minutes ago
- New York Times
The Federico Chiesa chant and the fallout. Plus: Rangers chaos and panic rankings
The Athletic FC ⚽ is The Athletic's daily football (or soccer, if you prefer) newsletter. Sign up to receive it directly to your inbox. Hello! Terrace chants are part of football's soul. But how do you know if they're crossing a line? And who decides? On the way: 🗣️ Liverpool's Chiesa song 💰 Another transfer record? ⚽ Crimes against multiball 💪 The secrets of Salah's abs The average football chant passes without much comment but from time to time, terrace songs ignite a legitimate debate over decency. I saw it with Leeds United and a song about Willy Gnonto, their Italian winger. Gnonto is black and the words of the song referred to his genitalia. Some thought this was funny. Others regarded it as a racist trope. I fell into the second group. Advertisement Simon Hughes is seeing it now with Liverpool and Federico Chiesa, albeit over a completely different subject. He wrote about it yesterday and the massive response to his column, both on The Athletic website and Simon's social media accounts, convinced us to devote some time to it in TAFC. Chiesa joined Liverpool from Juventus last year, the sole signing added to Arne Slot's squad in his first summer as head coach. He had been frozen out in Turin and Anfield has been a slow burn for him. The 27-year-old got a rare moment in the sun last Friday when his late goal set up a Premier League victory against Bournemouth. If you were watching, you might have heard the chant in question (sung to the tune of Dean Martin's Sway): 'We can hear them crying in Turin, Federico, he's here to win. One chat with Arne Slot and he said 'ciao', F*** off Juve, I'm a Kopite now…' One profanity aside, you'd write it off as gentle stuff — until you consider the history between Liverpool and Turin-based Juventus, and a stadium disaster that occurred 40 years ago. It's that context that has left Simon feeling uncomfortable and questioning the tone of the song. Liverpool and Juve met in the 1985 European Cup final at Heysel Stadium in the Belgian city of Brussels. Thirty-nine people, most of them Juve fans, died after a wall collapsed and crushed them. The ground was in poor repair but a factor in the tragedy was a group of Liverpool fans charging towards rival supporters amid scenes of violence. The Chiesa chant was not about Heysel, of course. To suggest a deliberate correlation would be wrong. But the point Simon makes is that 'crying in Turin' and the aggression in 'F*** off Juve' could be regarded as crass or insensitive in Italy, given the events of Heysel. With good reason, Liverpool have long railed against tasteless chants about the 1989 Hillsborough disaster, which cost the lives of 97 of their fans. Advertisement 'It would not take much to amend 'f*** off' with something such as 'later, Juve', or even 'arrivederci',' Simon wrote. 'I'm sure there's someone out there with a more creative mind than me who can play with the bit about 'crying in Turin'. It would be a small gesture but one that would go a long way.' The responses to his column were hugely divided, between those who agreed and those who felt their fun was being spoiled. You can read the many comments (more than 600 of them) and if you do, you'll share one of my conclusions: that the propriety of a chant often depends on who it is you're talking to. Power rankings — that moving gauge of who's hot and who's not — are part of the bread and butter of sports writing. Tim Spiers has given the concept a welcome twist by turning them into 'panic rankings' this morning. He went back over the first weekend of Premier League games and figured out who, among the 20 clubs, is most likely to be losing control of their bowels. His answer? Everton — and having watched the men in blue in the flesh on Monday night, I'd be worrying about them too. West Ham United (second in Tim's league of woe) were equally abysmal but I was caught out by Brentford sitting seventh, behind Chelsea and Crystal Palace. Brentford have taken an almighty punt on Keith Andrews (above) as head coach but as they fell apart at Nottingham Forest on Sunday, you could be forgiven for asking how long it would be before they were questioning their own wisdom. Let's see. Here's an unusual Premier League offence: crimes against multiball. And don't laugh, because Aston Villa falling foul of the rules has just cost them £125,000. The story broke late last week but I wanted to row back to it because it's a novel disciplinary case and I didn't realise that in breaching multiball regulations, Villa are serial offenders. Advertisement Multiball is a system whereby teams position numerous balls around their pitch, rather than using the same one for the entire 90 minutes of a match. It's supposed to speed up the flow of play. Naturally, you can't just do as you please. The balls have to be evenly spread and positioned on cones. And ball assistants (formerly known as ball boys) aren't allowed to help outfield players retrieve them. Villa contravened these restrictions last season, time and time again. The upshot is a six-figure fine and a ban on using multiball in their first three home matches of the new Premier League campaign. Mind how you go. (Kick-offs 3pm ET/8pm UK time) UEFA Champions League qualifying play-offs: Celtic vs Kairat — Paramount+, ViX/TNT Sports; Fenerbahce vs Benfica — CBS, Paramount+, Amazon Prime/TNT Sports. Rangers and Russell Martin… it's not going well. They're already four points behind Celtic in the Scottish Premiership's perennial two-horse race, and a 3-1 defeat against Belgium's Club Brugge at Ibrox last night means their hopes of Champions League qualification are on thin ice. Defend like they did for Club Brugge's opening goal, above, and you really have got it coming. A disastrous start for Rangers 😫 A huge mix-up between the back line, gives Romeo Vermant a chance and he takes full advantage finishing brilliantly 💥 📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK — Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) August 19, 2025 Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Picture: Milan striker Okafor travels to England to sign Leeds contract
Noah Okafor is on his way to England, where he'll sign his contract with Leeds United today. Milan striker Okafor is expected to complete a permanent move to Leeds today. Okafor ready to sign Leeds contract PERTH, AUSTRALIA – JULY 31: Noah Okafor of AC Milan looks on during the match between Perth Glory and AC Milan at HBF Park on July 31, 2025 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by) Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano posted on X, formerly Twitter, the picture of the Switzerland international on a private jet during a trip to England on Wednesday morning. Okafor is expected to sign a four-year deal with the newly promoted Premier League side, while Milan will get a fee in excess of €20m. 🚨🟡🔵 EXCL: Noah Okafor, on his way to England as he signs in as new Leeds player later today! ✈️ 4 year contract plus option to extend, fee around €20m to AC Milan. #LUFC
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
West Ham vs Chelsea: Prediction, kick-off time, team news, TV, live stream, h2h results, odds today
Chelsea will be aiming to secure their first victory of the new Premier League campaign when they face West Ham on Friday. Enzo Maresca's side will be looking to bounce back after a frustrating goalless draw in their season-opener at home to Crystal Palace. Despite handing debuts to Jamie Gittens, Joao Pedro and Estevao, the Blues looked uninspired in attack and were unable to break down a disciplined Palace defence. The West London club enter the season with lofty ambitions, with some tipping them as outside contenders for the Premier League title. A clash with West Ham, therefore, provides an ideal chance to collect their first three points. In contrast, there is growing concern in East London after the Hammers slumped to a 3-0 defeat away to newly promoted Sunderland. Graham Potter's side looked disjointed and lacked fight, leading to early suggestions they could be dragged into a relegation battle. Potter, a former Chelsea manager, has already faced criticism for his approach at West Ham and will be desperate to take something from the game against his old club. Date, kick-off time and venue West Ham vs Chelsea is scheduled for an 8pm BST kick-off on Friday, August 22, 2025. The game will take place at the London Stadium. How to watch West Ham vs Chelsea TV channel: The game will be shown live on Sky Sports in the UK, broadcast on their Main Event and Premier League channels. Live stream: UK viewers can watch the game online via the Sky Go website or app. The match is also available on NOW with a Sky Sports subscription. Highlights: Available on the Sky Sports app in a mobile-friendly vertical format, and Chelsea's own app and website will have highlights ready to go after the game at 10pm. Live blog: You can also follow all the action with Standard Sport's live blog! West Ham vs Chelsea team news After missing Chelsea's opening fixture with an injury, Tosin Adarabioyo remains a doubt for Friday despite the issue being described as 'very minor.' Romeo Lavia also remains a doubt, will Levi Colwill has been sidelined for most of the season with an ACL injury. Nicolas Jackson is available again after suspension but, along with Christian Nkunku is unlikely to be included due to ongoing transfer speculation over their futures. Chelsea are still in the market for new additions and are reportedly confident of securing the services of Xavi Simons and Alejandro Garnacho. Elsewhere, the Hammers could be without Edson Alvarez, who is reportedly on his way out and close to joining Fenerbahce. Crysencio Summerville is nearing a return from a long-term hamstring problem, but this game may come prematurely. Despite conceding three goals on his debut, expect Mads Hermansen to keep Alphonse Areola out and continue between the sticks. West Ham vs Chelsea prediction Chelsea couldn't have asked for a better fixture to secure their first win of the season. Maresca will want to show fans they're a serious outfit and that the discourse regarding their progress is true. With the attacking talent at their disposal, I expect Chelsea to be on the front foot and create chances and score goals. Graham Potter's side looks bereft of ideas at the moment. They seemingly have come into the season without being fully prepared and were punished against Sunderland. Expect more of the same from this game, as many are tipping The Hammers to go down this season. Chelsea to win, 3-1 Head to head (h2h) history and results Chelsea came out on top last time these two sides met, winning 2-1 in a Premier League meeting in February 2025, courtesy of a Pedro Neto goal and Aaron Wan-Bissaka's own goal. West Ham wins: 44 Chelsea wins: 57 Draws: 23 West Ham vs Chelsea match odds West Ham win: 4/9 Chelsea win: 5/1 Draw: 13/5 Odds via Betfair (subject to change).
