Nottinghamshire (328 & 246-5) bt Hampshire (300 & 273) by five wickets

For the first time in 104 years, Hampshire have started a season with four successive County Championship defeats.

Hampshire remain at the foot of the first division after a five-wicket defeat against Nottinghamshire at the Rose Bowl - their sixth on the bounce in all cricket.

If that is not bad enough, they have fitness worries over Kabir Ali (knee) and Nic Pothas (hand) ahead of next week’s LV= County Championship match against Somerset at the Rose Bowl.

Both spent most of the final session off the field as Notts chased down their target of 246, to win with seven overs to spare.

Pothas’s day started badly and did not get much better.

After he and James Vince resumed the second innings on 177-4, Pothas (30) was the first to go as Hampshire lost their last six wickets for 83 runs.

Hampshire began brightly when Vince pinged three fours in one Darren Pattinson over. But he and Pothas were lbw in quick succession.

Dominic Cork and Sean Ervine added 48 in their 57-ball partnership for the seventh wicket.

But Hampshire lost three wickets in eight balls before Griffiths helped Ervine (45) add 24 for the last wicket.

A target of 246 in 63 overs was never likely to trouble Notts.

Needing to score at less than four an over on a wicket that a three-man ECB delegation is confident will last five days when the Rose Bowl hosts its inaugural Test, Nottinghamshire reached their target with the help of Mark Wagh’s unbeaten 131.

When Kabir limped off with a knee injury after just one over, Hampshire’s task became even harder.

Kabir returned for one more over but could manage no more. The 29-year-old has already taken 19 first-class wickets this season but is struggling to last the distance.

He has been unable to bowl in Hampshire’s last three second innings.

It is now expecting a lot for him to be available for every match during a frantic schedule that sees Hampshire end this month having played seven of their 16 Championship matches for the season.

An outstanding Michael Carberry catch at point gave Hampshire brief hope but without Kabir, Rangana Herath was needed to threaten like Samit Patel, who took 4-55 as their hosts collapsed to 273 all out.

Herath was not nearly as effective, finishing with 2 for 111 from 23 overs.

Hampshire are missing Imran Tahir badly. The last time they were bottom of the first division the leg spinner arrived in mid-season and inspired Hampshire to third place.

But Tahir was not re-signed for a third season because of doubts over whether he would qualify for a work permit under tighter regulations introduced this year.

Warwickshire signed Tahir instead and while Hampshire were toiling at the Rose Bowl their former talisman was bowling his new team to another victory with 4-27 against Kent.

Having taken 4-34 in Notts’ first innings, it was surprising that Dominic Cork bowled only seven overs. He did have the captaincy to concentrate on for the last half hour when wicketkeeper Pothas injured his left hand.

And he even replaced Pothas behind the stumps for a couple of overs before the arrival of fitness coach Iain Brunnschweiler, who Notts allowed to play as a wicketkeeping 12th man seven years after his last Hampshire appearance.

David Griffiths (3-59) bounced out Samit Patel (1) and Hashim Amla (54), who finished his Notts stint with 310 Championship runs at 77.5 - the sort of return Hampshire were hoping for from his former South Africa teammate Neil McKenzie (117 at 14.6).

But there was no stopping Wagh, who guided Notts to a third successive Championship win with his first Championship hundred of the season, an unbeaten 131 from only 158 balls. It included 17 fours and two driven sixes against Herath.

There is little time for Hampshire to regroup before their next Championship match, against Somerset at the Rose Bowl on Monday.

Marcus Trescothick’s side are only seven points above Hampshire and one of two other first division teams still looking for their first win of the season.