Northants miss out as Notts join Worcestershire in top two
Thursday 28 September 2017 18:13, UK
Notts required 12 points to end Northamptonshire's hopes of leapfrogging them into second place and accrued them as fourth-placed Sussex batted out the final day at Hove.
Off-spinner Matthew Carter bagged four wickets for the visitors and Samit Patel claimed three, while Luke Wells scored 103 in the hosts' 229-7 declared.
Promotion concludes an excellent season for Notts, who also won the Royal London One-Day Cup and NatWest T20 Blast, and gives retiring captain Chris Read a successful end to his career.
Read hit his 36th first-class hundred in his final knock, his 242-run partnership with fellow centurion Billy Root propelling Notts from 65-5 to 477 all out in their first innings.
Northamptonshire finished five points behind Notts in third after easing to a six-wicket win at Leicestershire, their ninth win of the campaign.
Luke Procter, on loan from Lancashire, plundered 94 for Northants as rock-bottom and winless Leicestershire suffered a ninth defeat in 14 matches.
Worcestershire wrapped up the title, meanwhile, after hammering second-bottom Durham by 137 runs at New Road - the visitors skittled for 232 after being set 370 to win, with India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin taking 5-95.
Daryl Mitchell had earlier notched his seventh century of the season as Worcestershire, who secured promotion on day three, declared on 242-3.
Plus, eighth-placed Derbyshire ended their campaign with a 137-run victory over sixth-placed Gloucestershire at Bristol - Imran Tahir snaring five wickets as the hosts were shot out for 223 chasing 381.
Gloucestershire had earlier declared overnight on 224-2 in their first innings before Derbyshire called time on their second at 144-0, with Ben Slater hitting 74no and Luis Reece an unbeaten 61.
