On the day of his 38th birthday Hampshire captain Robin Smith led his side to the three bowling bonus points needed to secure promotion to next season's County Championship Division One.

Alan Mullally's dismissal of Greg Smith at around 4.20pm on the second day ensured jubilant celebrations on the field and among the small band of visiting supporters.

In something of an anti-climax rain, which has continually interrupted this match, returned shortly afterwards with Notts' first innings still stuttering along at 212-9.

Play re-started after an hour and Notts' last-wicket pairing of Richard Logan and Nadeem Malik added another 33 before Logan lost his middle stump to Mullally for a career-high 29 out of an all-out total of 245.

Just 12 overs were bowled during the first two sessions of the day, with Notts adding 34 runs for the loss of Usman Afzaal. The England tourist will look back on his dismissal with regret. Clean bowled by Alex Morris nine runs short of his century he is now stranded on 999 runs for the season. Just prior to his demise he ambled two runs when a comfortable three was on the cards with more purposeful running.

In the first over after tea Chris Read drove Alan Mullally for the two needed to bring up the Notts' 200, thereby securing the first batting point.

The Notts' `keeper didn't hang around much longer, playing around the swing of Morris, whose fifth victim of the innings also took him to 50 Championship wickets for the season.

Mullally snared his third victim soon afterwards as Stephen Randall's lack of foot movement was a contributory factor in his thickish edge through to Adrian Aymes.

Then came the dismissal of Smith which led to the fulfilment of a season's dream for the Hampshire side. Umpires David Shepherd and David Constant watched the fielders celebrate before making a couple of riotously funny attempts at doing the `high-five' themselves.

Mullally joined Morris in claiming a five-wicket haul and the celebrations could begin in earnest with poor light preventing Hampshire from beginning their innings

© CricInfo Ltd.