Bears put to the sword as title sealed at Trent Bridge

LED impressively from the front by captain Haseeb Hameed’s fourth century of the season, Nottinghamshire clinched the 2025 Rothesay County Championship on day two of the final round of fixtures, putting themselves out of reach of defending champions Surrey as they totalled 374 in reply to Warwickshire’s 258.

- By JON CULLEY

Needing just two more points at the start of play to deny Surrey a fourth consecutive title, Nottinghamshire achieved that goal at six minutes before five o’clock as Kyle Verreynne, their South Africa international wicketkeeper, pulled seamer Nathan Gilchrist high over the deep midwicket boundary for six, taking their first-innings total past 300 to secure a second batting bonus point.

Verreynne went on to make 83, with Liam Patterson-White hitting 70 as the two shared a decisive seventh-wicket partnership of 119.

Ethan Bamber, Ed Barnard and Gilchrist took three wickets each but at seven for three in their second innings, trailing by 109 runs, Warwickshire, who had their sights on overtaking Somerset to take third place in the table, are in deep trouble.

It is Nottinghamshire’s seventh County Championship in all and their first since 2010.

Yet for all that it was Verreynne, who hit four sixes, and Patterson-White, who struck 11 fours, who grabbed the glory, it was Hameed who made it possible.