Chris Read reached his maiden double century, in what is believed to be the only championship match in which both wicketkeepers have scored double hundreds, as a game featuring a plethora of batting records petered out to a predictable draw yesterday.
Resuming on 161 with Nottinghamshire having passed the follow-on target and safe, Read blazed to 240, becoming the first Nottinghamshire wicketkeeper to make a double century. It took his average against Essex this season to 405 and his team well past Essex’s 700 for nine declared, in which James Foster scored 204. Read and Graeme Swann took their eighth-wicket partnership to 216 before Swann drove tamely to long-off. Danish Kaneria did not bowl because of a sore back.
Nottinghamshire’s 791 was their highest first-class score, passing the 739 for seven against Leicestershire at Trent Bridge in 1903, and the second-highest score against Essex. Nottinghamshire have three of the top six scores against Essex.