Kent will live to fight another day in Division One of the Vitality County Championship after they battled for a draw with Hampshire on a thrilling final day at Canterbury.

Kent were all out for 338 in their second innings, leaving Hampshire to chase 143 from nine overs at 15.89.

Jack Leaning made exactly 100 in a stand of 149 with Harry Finch, who was the last man out for 79, while Kyle Abbott took four for 66 and Muhammad Abbas three for 69.

Hampshire spent 2.4 overs trying to pull off an improbable run chase and were 24 for one when bad light stopped play at 5.54pm.

It’s been a tough season at The Spitfire Ground, but the members who stuck by their team were finally rewarded with a superb day of cricket that was fascinatingly poised throughout, particularly during a fractious and excruciating final session.

Kent began on 70 without loss in their second innings, still 126 behind and they suffered a major blow went Tawanda Muyeye went to the fourth ball of the morning when he edged Abbott to Toby Albert at second slip and was out for 46.

He then removed Ben Compton for 25, again caught by Albert, before Abbas took two wickets in nine balls. A distraught Daniel Bell-Drummond was lbw for 23, before Joe Denly saw his off stump pinged back for five.

Abbott returned from the Nackington Road to get Joey Evison for 11, victim of a low slip catch by James Vince, leaving Leaning and Finch to survive to 145 for five at lunch.

If Kent’s prospects looked bleak at that point, the duo then batted out the entire afternoon session, with only one serious alarm: Leaning was on 34 when he drove Brad Wheal straight to extra cover, but the ball hit Tom Prest in the stomach and fell to the floor. Leaning subsequently drove James Fuller for four to reach his 50 and simultaneously put Kent into the lead.

Hampshire’s tactic of bowling short backfired as both batters comfortably dealt with a barrage of bouncers. With the game drifting Dawson switched to the Nackington Road End, but he had no more joy trying to spin the ball up the slope than he had down it.

The hosts reached a far healthier looking 268 for five at tea, at which point the lead was 72 with 37 overs remaining.

Hampshire’s hopes now hinged on the new ball and although Leaning glanced a single of Abbott to bring up his hundred, he was lbw to Abbas in the next over, ending a record sixth-wicket partnership for Kent against Hampshire and reigniting the contest.

Wheal replaced Abbott at the Pavilion End and immediately had Charlie Stobo caught by Prest for 17 at short midwicket. Abbott switched ends and got Matt Parkinson for seven and George Garrett went for four, caught behind off Wheal in the next over.

Singh, however, managed to linger for 27 balls in a crucial last wicket stand with Finch that ate up 11 overs. Aside from one frankly embarrassing appeal for a catch to a ball that everyone in the ground could see had bounced, they offered few chances until Finch inexplicably tried to hook James Fuller and he was caught at first slip by Vince.

Although rain had already started to fall and the covers went on and off without any overs being lost and Hampshire sent out Vince and Fuller.

It might have been a viable run chase in Blast cricket but in bad light and with nine fielders on the boundary it was largely theoretical, especially when the rain returned.

Vince was bowled by Garrett for 11 in the gathering gloom and although Liam Dawson hit ten off the next two balls, the umpires brought the players off and the players eventually shook hands after some tetchy exchanges as they left the field.

With Lancashire and Nottinghamshire both losing, Kent retain a slim chance of avoiding relegation and they face a crucial game at home to the latter next week.

Kent’s Jack Leaning said: “We probably needed to win this game but if we couldn’t win it we needed to get a decent draw so we’ll definitely take 11 points from it and hopefully some results elsewhere will go our way and we can win the last two games to get a happy ending to the season.

“We quite like batting together to be honest (Finch). We spend enough time together off the field so it makes sense that we enjoy batting together. (The plan was) just to see where the game took us really, the nature of the pitch was quite slow, it wasn’t particularly easy to score when they hit their lines.

“They set some good fields and obviously they’re a very good team as well, but as they got through the innings they changed their tactics, which allowed us to score more easily.

“If we got an opportunity to try and push for a result then brilliant but unfortunately it didn’t go that way and here we are.

“We got told at tea that it was looking like (Notts and Lancs) were both going to get it beat, so it altered the game slightly. There was talk about trying to set a game up because obviously they’re in the hunt, or they were in the hunt, to win the league, especially with the result down at Taunton but it didn’t quite fall that way and as it stands a draw, albeit not the best result we could have hoped for this week, keeps us alive.

(On Singh and Garrett’s batting) “Little bits like that sometimes go unnoticed, especially when there’s not a run value, but the time taken out of the game allows us to bat differently and still drive the game ourselves.

“The way Jas batted at the end with Finchy took some time out of the game, gave us a good opportunity of trying to get a draw and all the pressure’s on them to go and win the game.

“It’s just a shame we couldn’t have done it earlier in the gae and I think we’ve had this conversation a few times this year, but there’s still two games to go and if we can get a couple of positive results, who knows where the season will finish?

“We’ve sat here and had the same conversation in the last two seasons and we’re still in Division One, so there’s still hope yet.”

Hampshire’s Adrian Birrell said: “To get 20 wickets on this pitch, with a Kookaburra, and it got really flat, it sort of went to its old characteristics of slow and low and no pace and I’m very proud of the guys to get 20 wickets on that, it was a huge effort.

“There was that very good partnership with Finch and Leaning when we didn’t get a wicket in the afternoon and missed one or two chances, but we knew with the second new ball we could crack it open and we did, but there was just too much at the back end with the light going.

“We lost time yesterday, we lost time on the first day and we lost the toss, so a lot of things against us, but full credit to the guys, they put in a huge amount of effort to try and win this game.

“We knew it was a crucial game in relation to where we are on the log and what was happening also at Somerset. We were looking at the game and looking here and seeing if we could somehow get a win and keep in touch.

“It was tough because they’ve got nine fielders on the boundary and one long side here, it was just too much right at the end. Everyone in the changing room said let’s go for it and the captain led from the front, opening the batting. It was like a T20 line-up with Fuller going in up front as well, it was just too many at the back end there.

(On the incidents at the end) “It was two sides, one trying to save the game and one trying to win and then there was light involved and the fielding side thought we should be off the field and there was something said there, but it’s all in the heat of the battle and two sides desperately trying to play a very good game of cricket.

“It was a bit heated but I think over four days it was an excellent game of cricket and we unfortunately couldn’t quite get the win we needed.

“I don’t think it was out looking at the replays (the incident with Singh), but our guys thought it was out. That happens when you’re desperately trying to win a game and things are said. There’s a lot of heat in that moment and that’s cricket.

“It was a good game to be part of and we really pushed hard to try and win this game. Abbott getting nine wickets in the match, Abbas has just got 700 first-class wickets and Dawson bowling a lot of overs … Prest’s innings was outstanding and got us in to a position where we could get them to follow on batting with the tail.

“There were so many good things and a lot of fight shown by the team. We sort of rue the first four games of the season because since then we’ve been as good as any team in the country.”