Kent’s South African paceman Keith Dudgeon took four wickets to all but shatter Northamptonshire’s hopes of chasing 260 on day two of this Rothesay County Championship match at Wantage Road.

On a day which encompassed parts of three innings and saw 20 wickets fall, Dudgeon claimed four for 32, including three in nine balls, as Northamptonshire stumbled to 107 for seven at stumps, still requiring 153. Only George Bartlett’s battling unbeaten 54 offers the hosts some faint hopes for tomorrow.

Earlier young Northamptonshire quick Raphy Weatherall again spearheaded a spirited fightback, picking up three Kent wickets in 10 balls, including England opener Zak Crawley (31) who fell to another loose shot.

Crawley and Ben Compton made batting look straightforward in a half-century stand before lunch, but Weatherall had his tail up after the interval and with the other bowlers keeping up the pressure, Kent lost seven for 49 and rued several careless shots which went straight to fielders. Joey Evison though mounted a determined fightback with 52.

Kent had made short work of the Northamptonshire tail first thing, taking the last three wickets and a first innings lead off 88 as the hosts were skittled for 143. Jas Singh who finished with career best figures of four for 35 ended Rob Keogh’s valiant resistance on 64, caught low at second slip.

Singh picked up his fourth when Dom Leech was trapped lbw, Grant Stewart wrapping up the innings when Liam Guthrie was caught down the legside.

With batting conditions easing, Crawley and Compton went into lunch with Kent 61 without loss and hopes of building a daunting target.

Crawley looked fluent, playing a carefully controlled on drive off Luke Procter and taking advantage when Guthrie strayed, turning him off his legs and playing a silky drive through the covers. Compton meanwhile pulled Guthrie behind square and drove handsomely through extra cover.

But it was a more energised Northamptonshire that emerged after lunch, claiming three wickets in seven deliveries. Justin Broad struck first, removing Crawley who upper cut straight to Saif Zaib at cover.

Next over Zaib took an even sharper catch at short midwicket when Daniel Bell-Drummond clipped Weatherall firmly off his legs, while Tawanda Muyeye, top scorer in Kent’s first innings, advanced to the young quick, falling over slightly as he was adjudged lbw. Weatherall was denied the hattrick when he drew the edge of Jack Leaning’s bat, the ball running just wide of the slips.

Weatherall soon had a third scalp. Bowling around the wicket he sent Compton’s off-stump cartwheeling, doubling his first-class wicket tally in two days.

The succession of Kent wickets continued, Leaning turned Guthrie off his legs, the ball flying to sub fielder Tiaan Louw on the backward square-leg boundary.

Evison played a classy on-drive to take Kent into three figures, but they lost a sixth wicket when a fired-up Leech snared Harry Finch lbw, followed by Stewart who hooked Procter to midwicket.

Evison forged an enterprising 36-run partnership with Dudgeon to regain some momentum, before the South African was caught behind off an attempted cut against Zaib. The left-arm spinner then found some turn to trap Singh lbw. Evison finally holed out smiting Leech powerfully to Zaib on the deep-midwicket boundary.

Kent’s bowlers made a perfect start as Vasconcelos left a Dudgeon delivery which jagged back and hit off-stump. Bartlett flashed Gilchrist over the slips for two boundaries and pulled Dudgeon over deep midwicket for six, but lived a charmed life, beaten outside off-stump and surviving several appeals and a nick through the slips.

At the other end, Stewart gave Kent a much-needed breakthrough when he drew the edge of Procter’s bat before he bowled Sales shouldering arms.

Bartlett was settling into his work now, but Dudgeon was determined to get the bulk of the work done this evening picking up Zaib, Keogh and Lewis McManus, all caught by Leaning in the slips. To cap a terrible session for Northamptonshire, Broad was lbw to Gilchrist in the final over, the third batter to shoulder arms.

Northamptonshire bowling coach Rory Kleinveldt said: “From a bowling perspective, I think in the second innings, it was very pleasing to see how we how we fought back into the game, gave us ourselves a chance of possibly chasing this down.

“I mean, the game is not over yet. We still, we still have Barts in there, and we’ll definitely have a crack at it tomorrow. But the bowlers showed good character today and got us back into the game and gave us a chance of winning it.

“Raphy Weatherall bowled beautifully in this game. Everyone’s bowled well really, to be honest. I think in the first innings we probably let ourselves down a little bit on the extras and our discipline, and that’s also come back to haunt us a little bit in the second innings. But in saying that, I thought throughout the game we bowled nicely, and hopefully we can continue that going forward.”

Kent’s South African quick bowler Keith Dudgeon said: “It was a bit slow going today. I found it quite hard to run into the breeze, but then obviously hitting my straps when the breeze dropped off a little bit and landed the ball in the right areas. And thank goodness the boys caught them at the back,

“It’s a lovely group of boys at Kent. They were pretty quick to give me the nickname The Rhino. I don’t know where that came from, but it was so welcoming. I was welcomed into the dressing room. I got a spot straight away. Everyone spoke to me with respect. Everyone was so friendly, that’s all you can ask for. Coming in as a as an overseas you never really know what you’re going to get and the boys were absolutely awesome, from the coaching staff to the youngsters in the side.”

Kent bowler Jas Singh said: “I didn’t really expect to play the first game, but I was chuffed to perform like that after struggling last year. I’m so happy.

[When Northamptonshire took 10 wickets in the afternoon session] “I think everyone was pretty calm, to be fair. I guess that’s just cricket. You lose a couple of wickets and you can be panicking a bit, but the group was very calm, and we knew anything over 200 was a good score on that wicket. The plan tomorrow is to clean up and get three wickets as early as possible, but obviously to stick into the basics and doing everything well as we have done.”