A combination of rain and bad light frustrated Northamptonshire after they had taken a solid grip on their Division Two match with Leicestershire in the County Championship.

At stumps the home side were 356 runs behind on 97-2 in their first innings.

George Bartlett posted his maiden hundred for Northamptonshire and finished unbeaten on 126 – with 18 fours and a six – as the visitors began the second day by scoring 116 in 14 overs to secure maximum batting points, before declaring on 453-7.

Chris Tremain (37), in his final match for the county before returning to Australia, and Lewis McManus (28 not out) backed up Bartlett’s fine innings, before stalwart seam bowler Ben Sanderson supplied the bonus of a big wicket in his first over as Australian opener Marcus Harris was dismissed for a duck.

Sanderson found the edge as the left-hander, who made a double hundred against Derbyshire last week, pushed at a ball outside off stump to be caught behind without scoring.

Rishi Patel, aggressive as usual, found the boundary five times in six legitimate deliveries facing Luke Procter but succumbed to the all-rounder’s next one, propping forward to defend but feathering an edge through to McManus.

Leicestershire, for whom Louis Kimber is unbeaten on 47, were looking torebuild when gloomy conditions forced the players off the field in mid-afternoon never to return.

Only 37 overs had been possible and with wet weather forecast for day three this may be yet another match destined to end in a draw.