Sam Northeast and James Tredwell batted bravely, but Kent still looked to be heading towards defeat in their County Championship game against Essex.

With the first two days at Chelmsford having already been dominated by the home side, the first two sessions of the third followed in similar fashion. However, Essex had not reckoned on the obdurance of Kent captain Northeast and slow bowler Tredwell, who added an unbroken 124 for the eighth wicket, batting out the entirety of the evening session in the process, and seeing the game into a fourth and final day tomorrow.

Unfortunately for Kent, the pair’s efforts still look set to be in a losing cause. Having come together at 128/7, they had seen their side to 252/7 at the close of play, still requiring another 110 runs just to avoid an innings defeat and make their hosts bat again.

Skipper Northeast was 116 not out at stumps, having made his third century of the Championship season, the 14th of his First Class career, and the only three-figure effort of a high-scoring game so far. Tredwell was unbeaten on 62, making his first half-century of the campaign, and providing welcome assistance to his captain as the rest of the batting order folded around him.

Having been all out for 207 in the first innings, Kent found the going tough with the ball against an Essex side who produced a solid batting performance right down the order. Four batsmen made half-centuries, and two others made exactly 49, as they posted a commanding total of 569.

Going into the day with a lead of 273 runs with four first innings wickets still in hand, Essex further cemented their position in the morning session. 89 runs were added for those final four wickets, though Ryan ten Doeschate became the fourth Essex batsman of the innings to lose his wicket with a century in sight, falling to Mitch Claydon for 91.

Graham Napier made 12 and Matt Quinn six before both were removed by Kent’s South African seamer Kagiso Rabada, who finished with figures of 4-118 from 34 overs in his first Championship appearance for the county.

The part-time leg spin of Joe Denly brought the final wicket for Kent, as James Foster was caught in the deep for 49, leaving the hosts 569 all out, and Kent requiring 362 runs just to make their hosts bat again.

Interestingly, Essex’s total was the county’s highest total without an individual century recorded, beating the 560 they made against Sussex at Leyton in 1933.

Kent’s faint hopes of salvaging anything from the game were further dented when both openers fell in the short period leading up to the lunch break. Sean Dickson was well caught by Alastair Cook off the bowling of Napier, before Jamie Porter had Cowdrey caught by Dan Lawrence for 15. Joe Denly fell early in the afternoon session to the same bowler for 2, leaving Kent 29/3 and the result seemingly all but academic.

Northeast and Darren Stevens added 57 together for the fourth wicket before Stevens was bowled by Bopara for 25. The all-rounder then took a catch off the bowling of Quinn to remove Alex Blake for 2, before coming back into the attack and trapping Adam Ball lbw for 8.

While Northeast brought up an 85-ball half-century, debutant wicket-keeper Callum Jackson (4) became the seventh wicket to fall, easily caught after top-edging a Bopara delivery.

When Jackson’s wicket fell shortly before tea, Essex would have been confident of wrapping up the victory inside three days, but Kent’s eighth wicket partnership of Northeast and Tredwell had other ideas.

They will be looking to bat on for as long as possible on the last day tomorrow, and hope for something of a miraculous comeback to give them a chance of taking anything out of the game.

Speaking to journalists at the close of play, Tredwell said: “There’s always hope. We spoke just now about Jack Russell and Michael Atherton whenever that was. It is more about confidence, us as a team. Sam is getting runs and playing nicely again and that’s great for us.

“Hopefully we’ll get through the first hour tomorrow and see what happens. Those first 10-15 overs in the morning when we first get in, we’ll be assessing the pitch again and the new ball just around the corner will pose different challenges. If we can stunt the new ball for a period of time, then we’ll wait and see. We have to combat that, get through it and go again.

 

 

Specsavers County Championship Division Two, Essex v Kent at Chelmsford, July 3-6 2016

Stumps, day three: 

Kent 207 (Blake 89 not out; Porter 3/51) and 252/7 (Northeast 116*, Tredwell 62*; Bopara 3/49) trail Essex 569 (Bopara 94, ten Doeschate 91, Westley 88, Lawrence 82; Rabada 4-118) by 110 runs with three second innings wickets remaining.

Essex: Browne, Cook, Westley, Bopara, Mickleburgh, Lawrence, ten Doeschate*, Foster†, Napier, Quinn, Porter

Kent: Cowdrey, Dickson, Denly, Northeast*, Stevens, Blake, Ball, Jackson†, Tredwell, Rabada, Claydon

Essex won the toss and elected to field.

Full scorecard available here.

 

Photograph courtesy of Sarah Ansell