Opener Tom Latham was glad to make a positive start to his Kent career, after registering two half-centuries on his debut in this week’s win over Glamorgan.

The 24-year-old New Zealand opening bat, who will be playing for Kent for the next three months of the county campaign, enjoyed a superb start to his time at the club, with scores of 53 and 79 not out helping his side to a ten-wicket win.

Latham also struck up an immediate bond with fellow opener Daniel Bell-Drummond. The pair became the first Kent openers to register a century partnership in each innings of a County Championship game since 1954, and only the third in history.

Bell-Drummond also impressed in the game, continuing his fine early season form with scores of 84 and 86 not out.

“He’s good”, Latham said of his new teammate after the conclusion of the game on Wednesday.

“He certainly played very well, and even in the first innings he showed what sort of player he is. Hopefully he can continue for the rest of the season.

“I think we both complement each other quite nicely. Whoever you bat with, it’s about keeping it simple, and today we were just trying to knock it off in small targets. The runs were flowing reasonably well without going too hard at them.”

Latham, a man with 68 caps already to his name at the age of just 24, feels his fellow opener has everything he might need to represent England.

“He’s been putting the numbers on the board at the start of the season, and I guess that’s all you can ask for”, Latham said of the 22-year-old Bell-Drummond’s chances.

“Hopefully for him, he’s just focussing on his next innings, and if the chance comes, then cool. I think if you start looking too far ahead, that’s when you start chasing things.

“From what I’ve seen and heard, I think he’s a pretty level kid, and if he keeps going the way he is, he has every chance of playing for England.”

Latham was glad to get back out on the field and in the action again, with minor ankle surgery in the last few months meaning he had had a break from competitive cricket before the match.

“I suppose I’ve had two months without playing cricket. I’ve been hitting balls back home, but this was the first time in a game and facing bowlers”, he explained.

“It was just about making those subtle adjustments. Wherever you go around the world, it’s about adapting to conditions, and I thought I did that reasonably well. It would have been nice to kick on in the first innings, but that’s cricket – sometimes you get out.”

The Canterbury-born batsman also thanked his new teammates for the way they had made him feel comfortable in the Kent dressing room.

“It’s a great group”, he said. “They’ve welcomed me with open arms. I suppose anyone that comes into a new side is a little bit nervous – I was, but the guys have been fantastic.

“They’re a great bunch of lads, and a great bunch of cricketers. Hopefully we can continue the momentum we’ve built up in the previous four days and take that into the Gloucester match.”