An even and intriguing opening day between Leicestershire and Kent saw 15 wickets fall in the Championship match between the sides at Grace Road.

Kent looked to have taken control of the match when they dismissed their hosts for 217 in the afternoon, but five wickets in the evening session saw them slip to 106-5, still trailing Leicestershire by 111 runs at the close.

Mitch Claydon picked up his fourth career five-wicket haul as he helped run through Leicestershire in the morning and afternoon sessions, taking figures of 5-77 as he troubled all of the hosts’ top order.

Debutant Charlie Hartley helped clean up the Leicestershire tail as he took 2-40 in his maiden First Class appearance, before Kent experienced batting trouble of their own in the evening session; their top order struggling against some disciplined seam bowling.

In a frantic morning session, the home side put on 126 runs but lost five wickets in the process; four of them to Claydon as he troubled all of the batsmen with his nagging accuracy and consistent line and length.

After winning the toss and inserting the visitors, Kent captain Rob Key may have been slightly worried as Greg Smith and Angus Robson added a speedy 46 together for Leicestershire’s opening wicket.

However, Claydon would go on to fully vindicate his skipper’s decision, and it was he who made the initial breakthrough in the 11^th over; Smith (16) edging with wicket-keeper Sam Billings taking a diving catch behind the stumps.

That same pair of Claydon and Billings combined again to remove Ned Eckersley for 3 in Claydon’s next over, as Key’s decision to bowl first began to be somewhat vindicated.

Daniel Bell-Drummond completed one of the catches of the season to get rid of Dan Redfern (9) off the bowling of Darren Stevens; the youngster taking a diving, one-handed catch to pluck the ball out of the air at midwicket, leaving Leicestershire 82-3.

Home captain Josh Cobb came to the crease, and was given something of a working over by Claydon, who had changed end in replacing Charlie Hartley, who was given a six-over first spell in his maiden First Class appearance.

Cobb struggled to combat Claydon’s consistency, and eventually edged to Stevens at first slip, who held on to a good catch; the Leicestershire skipper departing for 9.

With wickets continuing to fall at the other end, opener Angus Robson – brother of England opener Sam – continued to go about his business, dealing almost exclusively in boundaries as he reached his half-century from just 58 balls.

He would be the fifth man to fall before the lunch interval, however, caught off Claydon down the legside for 56. The former Durham seamer had already recorded impressive figures of 4-47 before the interval, as the home side reached it at 126-5.

The steady stream of tumbling wickets continued for the hosts into the afternoon session, Claydon completing his five-for by trapping Niall O’Brien lbw for 26; the Australian securing the fourth five-wicket haul of his First Class career in the process.

Adam Riley bowled Ben Raine for 8 before Rob Taylor and Jigar Naik added 54 together for the eight wicket – the biggest partnership of the Leicestershire innings – as they took the score on to 206-7.

Adam Ball was the man to make the breakthrough, bowling Taylor for 37 before Hartley picked up his maiden First Class wicket from the very next ball, having Naik caught behind for 25.

Hartley would polish the Leicestershire innings off too, having Nathan Buck caught in the slips for 2 to leave the hosts 217 all out, and the Kent bowlers very satisfied indeed to have dismissed the home side before tea on the first day; Claydon eventually finishing with figures of 5-77 from 21 excellent overs.

Openers Daniel Bell-Drummond and Rob Key were able to see out the seven overs between the change of innings and tea, but would both fall as Kent somewhat collapsed in the evening session.

Skipper Key had made 10 when he was caught at short-midwicket attempting to hook former Kent bowler Charlie Shreck, while Bell-Drummond was trapped lbw by Raine for 24.

Ben Harmison, coming in at number three with Sam Northeast down the order at five, made a start and got himself in, reaching 20 before he was trapped lbw after being hit on the back pad by Taylor.

Brendan Nash had also made a decent start; he had reached 21 when he chopped onto his own stumps off the bowling of Buck, before Northeast edged Shreck to Greg Smith at second slip the very next ball; a good catch seeing the batsman making his way back to the pavilion for 6.

Darren Stevens (8*) and Adam Ball (1*) were then able to see their side through to stumps without further loss, and will look to chip away further at the 111-run deficit when play resumes for day two in the morning. 

 

Stumps, day one: Leicestershire vs. Kent, LV=County Championship Division Two, Grace Road, Leicester, 7-10 July 2014:

Kent 106-5 (Bell-Drummond 24; Shreck 2-31) trail Leicestershire 217 (Robson 56; Claydon 5-77, Hartley 2-40) by 111 runs

 

Leicestershire: Smith, Robson, Eckersley, Cobb*, Redfern, O’Brien†, Taylor, Raine, Naik, Buck, Shreck

Kent: Bell-Drummond, Key*, Harmison, Nash, Northeast, Stevens, Ball, Billings†, Claydon, Riley, Hartley

Kent won the toss and elected to bowl

Bonus points: Leicestershire 2, Kent 3

Full scorecard available here

 

Pictures supplied by www.sarahansellphotography.com