Nottinghamshire and reigning champions Leicestershire were the top two teams in the first weekend of this season’s County Championship Veterans’ Premier Division played at Ashford.

Both counties ended the weekend on a perfect record of three wins each.

Nottinghamshire started Saturday morning with a hard-fought 6-4 victory over Yorkshire in a clash which last four-and-a-half hours and eight of the 10 sets required either four or five games, while Leicestershire started with a comprehensive 8-2 win over newcomers Dorset.

Saturday afternoon saw Yorkshire involved in another titanic battle and once again they came off second best as they were beaten 6-4 by Leicestershire, while Notts beat former champions Sussex 7-3.

Kent and Warwickshire joined Leicestershire and Notts with two wins each at the end of Saturday as Warwickshire beat Sussex and Hertforshire, while Kent beat Dorset and Herts.

Sunday morning saw the last round of matches of the weekend and saw Notts overwhelm Warwickshire 9-1 while Leicestershire beat Sussex 8-2 to continue their unbeaten run.

The other overnight unbeaten team, Kent, were beaten 6-4 by Yorkshire who this time managed to win a narrow contest.

The county sides meet up at Draycott in February to continue this absorbing division and with Leicestershire and Notts due to play in the first match Saturday morning, something explosive is anticipated.

The current table is