PERHAPS Steve Harmison still needs the challenge of international cricket. Bowling at the Nottinghamshire openers at Trent Bridge yesterday he was very ordinary, but when he returned to bowl at Hashim Amla he was clearly fired up.

His accuracy also improved and he beat the bat a few times, but the classy South African won the battle then got carried away against the lesser bowlers and surrendered to Ben Harmison in the day’s penultimate over.

Young Ben Stokes had just been hit for three fours in the previous over as Amla moved into overdrive after reaching 50 off 70 balls. He had just driven another boundary through the covers off Harmison junior when he fished at the next one and edged to Phil Mustard for 67.

In his final game before making way for David Hussey, Amla had put Nottinghamshire in control, however, and they closed the second day on 191for three, only 27 behind.

England have apparently not given up hope of Graham Onions being fit for the first Test against Bangladesh at Lord’s at the end of this month. He will have to prove his fitness for Durham first and they are reaching the stage where they need him.

Watching selector Geoff Miller would not initially have been impressed by either Harmison or Liam Plunkett yesterday, although both have had to return to action earlier than is ideal because of Durham’s long list of crocks.

For all his waywardness, Plunkett continues to be Durham’s main wicket-taking threat, grabbing the first two.

He was also desperately unlucky not to remove Amla for four when the thinnest of inside edges missed leg stump by a whisker. Mark Wagh, who also had his share of early luck, was on 44 at the close.

It was at this stage last season that Durham began to win after drawing their first three games. But they need a massive turnaround to win this one and will require either a big improvement or some inspiration from Onions at Canterbury next week.

Hopes that Harmison would have an instant impact on his first championship appearance of the season were unfulfilled.

He appeared to be in some pain while batting and couldn’t get his radar right in his opening five-over spell.

Chris Rushworth again bowled accurately but the little bit of luck which would help to earn him his first wicket in first-class cricket was still lacking.

His fourth ball brought a good shout for lbw against left-hander Neil Edwards, recruited from Somerset in an effort to rectify Nottinghamshire’s lack of a reliable opener.

Rushworth had bowled eight overs for eight runs when Wagh cut him for four, either side of which the ball whistled just past the outside edge.

When Plunkett replaced Harmison he struck with his fifth ball. Bilal Shafayat shouldered arms to a ball which started just outside off stump and swung in just enough to make the lbw decision inevitable. Edwards reached 33 before he drove at a full-length ball wide of off stump and played on but, as at Headingley, Plunkett conceded runs at almost five an over.

The ball swung throughout the Durham innings and there is more life in the pitch than the others they have played on so far this season, encouraging attacking cricket.

The best bowler has been Charlie Shreck. He almost had Ian Blackwell early on yesterday when an edged drive flew just over Shafayat at third slip. Had Shreck himself been standing there it would have been a head-high catch.

Blackwell survived a few more edges before slicing Darren Pattinson to gully after contributing 43 to his stand of 81 with Dale Benkenstein.

Shreck’s impressive 23-over spell – broken by rain, bad light, tea, bed and breakfast - earned its reward when he produced the perfect in-swinging yorker to splatter Benkenstein’s leg and middle stumps.

The ex-skipper was out for 34 then Stokes and Mustard also got into the 30s in an entertaining stand of 59 before three wickets went down in the last three overs before lunch.

Stokes again impressed but when left-arm spinner Samit Patel came on the youngster advanced down the track to the first ball, which turned to beat his intended drive and gave Chris Read a simple stumping.

Ben Harmison played out the rest of the over but Mustard departed in the next, edging Paul Franks to wicketkeeper Chris Read for 31.

Then Plunkett fell to a bat-pad catch off Patel to take Durham into lunch on a disappointing note.

On his last championship appearance, in the titleclinching match at Canterbury in 2008, Harmison junior opened the batting. Now he was left with only his brother and Rushworth to support him and after making 14 he flailed at Franks and edged to the wicketkeeper.

Durham appeared to have plenty of depth in their batting, but a total of 218 was a big disappointment.

SCORECARD

Nottinghamshire v Durham
At Trent Bridge.
Overnight: Durham 79-3.

Durham First Innings
D M Benkenstein b Shreck 36
I D Blackwell c Shafayat b Pattinson 43
B A Stokes st Read b S R Patel 32
P Mustard c Read b Franks 31
B W Harmison c Read b Franks 14
L E Plunkett c Shafayat b S R Patel 3
C Rushworth c Edwards b Franks 9
S J Harmison not out 4
Extras (b4 lb2 w6 nb6 pens 0) 18
Total (67.4 overs) 218
Fall: 1-16 2-32 3-36 4-117 5-129 6-188
7-188 8-191 9-205
Bonus Pts: Nottinghamshire 3 Durham 1
Bowling: Pattinson 17-2-63-2. Shreck 23-6-
73-3. Franks 15.4-4-38-3. Mullaney 5-1-21-
0. S R Patel 7-3-17-2.

Nottinghamshire First Innings Close
N J Edwards b Plunkett 33
B M Shafayat lbw b Plunkett 16
M A Wagh not out 44
H M Amla c Mustard b B W Harmison 67
S J Mullaney not out 4
Extras (lb11 w6 nb10 pens 0)27
Total 3 wkts (54 overs) 191
Fall: 1-34 2-91 3-179
To Bat: S R Patel, A D Brown, C M W Read,
P J Franks, D J Pattinson, C E Shreck.
Bonus Pts: Nottinghamshire 3 Durham 1
Bowling: S J Harmison 13-2-41-0.
Rushworth 13-3-25-0. Plunkett 13-1-63-2.
B W Harmison 6-0-21-1. Blackwell 7-4-10-
0. Stokes 2-0-20-0.