After heavy overnight rain had prevented any play until 3.30pm, Durham, having elected to bat first, had reached 148-5 by the close on the first day.

Nottinghamshire included all four of their winter signings for their first CricInfo Championship match of the season. Australia's Greg Blewett returns for a second spell in county cricket after a relatively unsuccessful time at Yorkshire two years ago whilst off-spinning all-rounder Kevin Pietersen and left-arm seamer Greg Smith will have to adjust to unfamiliar conditions after playing all their first-class cricket in South Africa. Richard Logan, recruited from Northants made up the quartet. There was also a county debut for Gareth Clough, who excelled in the second XI last year and has one first-class match to his name with an appearance for Yorkshire in 1998.

Durham retained the same starting XI that drew with Gloucestershire last week and saw openers Jonathan Lewis and Michael Gough safely negotiate the 12 over, 40-minute session before tea, whilst adding 37-0. The only moment of relative discomfort came from a short pitched delivery by Smith which flew over Gough's head and left 'keeper Read stranded as it went for four byes.

After a brief settling in period after the resumption, Lewis began to display a fine array of strokes and his ninth boundary brought him a half-century off just 70 balls. Logan was particularly expensive, conceding 30 runs in his first five over spell.

With the score on 92 Notts at last picked up their first CricInfo Championship wicket of the season. Smith, from the Pavilion End, induced Lewis to nibble at a wide one and Read took a routine catch.

Martin Love, Durham's new recruit from Queensland, survived a confident lbw appeal before he's scored, again off Smith, but then showed is pedigree by clipping the same bowler for successive boundaries to bring up the 100.

Paul Franks appeared to receive a final warning from Umpire Trevor Jesty about running down the pitch in his follow-through but the England A tourist responded in the next over by claiming the wicket of Gough – Usman Afzaal taking a sharp offering low to his right at second slip.

With eight overs of the day remaining Notts picked up the prize wicket of Love, who suicidally elected not to play a shot at Gareth Clough and was given out lbw. Clough had only conceded 10 runs from seven tidy overs at that stage and fully deserved his first scalp for the county, bringing Notts their first bonus point of the season.

Jimmy Daley didn't last long as Richard Logan returned to the attack and up-rooted his off stump and nightwatchman Neil Killeen chipped a leading edge straight back to the same bowler. Notts finished the day very much in the ascendancy having picked up five wickets for just 45 runs.

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