Whether the familiarity was reassuring only Jonathan Trott could say but it was probably inevitable that the first ball of the England batsman’s second attempted comeback to first-class cricket would be delivered by one of Australia’s Test seamers.

That being the case, it was even more inevitable that it would be a bouncer, and Peter Siddle duly obliged. The second ball was even shorter, soaring high above the batsman’s helmet, but the third lifted wickedly towards the body, hurrying Trott into an instinctive and far from convincing defensive fend that looped back down the pitch off the edge of the bat. The ball dropped well short of Siddle but served to emphasise Nottinghamshire had missed a trick in not bringing in a short-leg.

It also ensured the bouncers kept coming, some from round the wicket, and though a pull that crossed the distant square leg boundary before a fielder could move was encouraging, a gloved hook down to fine leg was less so. It was a rather slower, but no less canny, bowler than Siddle who dismissed him: being fortunate to survive one concerted leg before appeal when he attempted to hit Andre Adams across the line did not deter Trott from trying to repeat the shot, again he missed, and this time he looked up to see umpire Martin Bodenham’s finger raised.

The innings was relatively short, at 31 balls for 23 runs, but it was apparent Trott was standing deep in his crease, stepping forward into a more orthodox position as the bowler’s arm came over. The stress-related issues that prompted his leaving the Ashes tour aside, forward momentum at the point of delivery was one of his technical problems when it came to dealing with the pace of Mitchell Johnson in Australia.

For Siddle, Trott looked much as he had in Australia. “He looked the same player, he went for his shots, played some nicely. I had a chat to him at lunch the previous day, he seemed happy and going well. It was certainly nice to get him early.”

Not that Trott was the only Warwickshire batsman found wanting. William Porterfield hung his bat out, fellow opener Varun Chopra drove loosely, and if Tim Ambrose was unfortunate to get one that kept low, the 18-year-old Sam Hain was neither forward or back when he edged to the wicketkeeper, while Rikki Clarke chipped tamely to midwicket.

It was as well for the Bears that Chris Woakes stayed calm, playing every ball on its merit. The all-rounder lost Keith Barker, caught at the second attempt in the slips, and Jeetan Patel, when Samit Patel held on to an edge off Siddle, but with the ball getting ever softer, Woakes found a determined companion in Chris Wright. Together they guided Warwickshire past the follow-on and beyond 300.

Playing throughout with a pleasing orthodoxy, Woakes went on to 91 before being bowled by Harry Gurney with the new ball. The innings may have been opportunely timed on a personal basis, as well as for his county. Despite missing the England training camp that begins in Loughborough on Tuesday, the 25-year-old is expected to link up with the Test squad in Nottingham on Sunday, and if either Stuart Broad or Jimmy Anderson is considered unfit to play at Trent Bridge, Woakes – rather than Durham’s Ben Stokes – is believed to be in line to deputise.

With Nottinghamshire’s second innings to come, Woakes has taken 29 championship wickets this season, at an average of 20.6, and the fact he has played himself into form with the bat as well can only help his cause.

“I haven’t been hitting the ball too badly actually, but it was definitely good to pass 50,” Woakes said. “I was just looking to bat time, I felt like I didn’t have to force it. I’ve been bowling with a good rhythm, and I feel like I’ve found a bit [of extra pace].”