Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club played their cricket in 2005 in Division One of both the County Championship and the totesport League. They started the season at 7–1 to win the title, and with a new captain, New Zealand's Stephen Fleming. The first first-class game of the season was against Loughborough UCCE, a draw which merely provided batting practice to Notts. The first Sunday League game was a disappointing rain-affected loss against Middlesex. They then drew against the same team in the County Championship, before scoring their first win over four days against Sussex County Cricket Club. They then lost by the narrowest of margins on the Sunday to Lancashire, and then by just 4 runs to Glamorgan the next day. On 4 May Nottinghamshire eased past Wales Minor Counties into the Second Round of the C&G Trophy. They then routed Surrey by an innings in their home ground The Oval before failing to chase a low target in the Sunday League against Worcestershire. On 18 May they lost to Sussex in the Second Round of the C&G Trophy, before losing to Kent and beating Gloucestershire in the Championship. However, Nottinghamshire weren't to take part in that fight. They lost to Durham, Leicestershire and Derbyshire in quick succession, and not even a win over Yorkshire helped as they finished with six losses and two wins, and finished bottom of the North Division. That poor form did not carry through into the Championship, however, as Nottinghamshire quietly sneaked into second place with a win over Glamorgan, and they also recorded a rare one-day victory thanks to a century from captain Stephen Fleming against Hampshire. They enjoyed two further games without a loss, beating Warwickshire by ten wickets in the Championship, and playing a no-result with Northamptonshire in the National League. In the last week of July, Nottinghamshire drew a match against Surrey, failing to push home the advantage after gaining a 90-run lead on first innings. August began with a week off, but on the 9th of that month, they bowled Gloucestershire out for 87 to take an eight-wicket win in the National League. A rain-ravaged Championship match at Trent Bridge with Middlesex ended in a draw, but their title hopes were dented after only scoring seven points after being bowled out for 181 in the first innings. However, an innings victory over Warwickshire gave them a temporary lead in Division One.