Stevens and Coles shine for visitors

Darren Stevens and Matt Coles again proved to be thorns in Leicestershire’s side on the second day of the LV=CC game at Grace Road.

Kent claimed a first innings lead of 51 after being bowled out for 210 with Stevens top-scoring with a typically hard-hit 63.

Ollie Freckingham and Charlie Shreck claimed three-fors while new ball duo Ben Raine and Clint McKay, who bowled exceptionally on the second morning, picked up two wickets apiece.

Stevens and Coles, who took a six-for in the first innings, then took three wickets apiece along with Calum Haggett.

Leicestershire ended the day 59 ahead on 110-9 in their second innings with Raine top-scoring with a gutsy unbeaten 30 from 62 balls.

It was a terrific contest in the first session as Leicestershire came out firing before Stevens launched a timely counter-attack from the visitors’ point of view.

Kent resumed on 44-2 with Sam Northeast and Rob Key at the crease but the new ball bowlers did some early damage. Raine trapped Key leg before for 8 and McKay pinned Northeast (17) in front in the next over.

Raine had figures of 10-4-16-2 when Shreck replaced him at the Pavilion End and Ben Harmison survived leg before appeals from both the ex Kent seamer and McKay.

The ever-willing Raine had another spell in place of McKay at the Bennett End and it was a good battle between him and Stevens. The former Fox hit five nicely timed boundaries but also saw three balls whistle past his outside edge, all in a three-over period.

Shreck picked up a deserved reward for his accurate bowling as Harmison, who worked hard for his seven runs, was lbw playing across one that ducked in sharply.

That left Kent on 94-5 before Stevens clattered another quartet of fours and a maximum in the space of ten balls to move to an entertaining 47-ball 50. Stevens hit another two fours in the 38^th over and Kent went to lunch on 141-5 with Stevens on 61 and Sam Billings 10 not out.

A three from Billings took the stand beyond 50 after the break but he fell in Freckingham’s first over from the top end. Ned Eckersley took a skier at mid-off after the batsman had shuffled a few paces down the wicket.

Freckingham’s golden touch continued in his next over as the paceman enticed Stevens into driving at one he may well wish he had left, Lewis Hill completing the dismissal behind the stumps.

Leicestershire had their tails up but Haggett and Ball then combined to frustrate the team with a vital eighth wicket stand of 60.

All of Ball’s 32 runs came in boundaries and Haggett also played some nice strokes before Ball was well held at deep extra cover by Aadil Ali off Freckingham, who had been introduced up the hill for the first time.

A boundary from Coles ensured Kent’s lead stretched in excess of 50 before Shreck wrapped up the innings, bowling Haggett (20) off an inside edge and having Ivan Thomas (0) caught by a tumbling McKay at mid-on.

There were still 53 overs scheduled to be bowled when the Leicestershire second innings started at 3.05pm and Robson hit four early boundaries in the arc between cover point and backward point to get the scoreboard moving.

But after the openers moved the score to 28, there were three wickets for the addition of just five runs. Boyce (5) and Robson (21) were lbw to Coles and Haggett respectively and Greg Smith then edged Coles to Ball at second slip with the team still 18 in arrears.

Andrea Agathangelou (8) and Ned Eckersley (14) were lbw to Stevens either side of tea and the all-rounder then had Lewis Hill (0) caught behind by Billings after he feathered one that bounced.

The ‘keeper took another catch after Ali, who battled to 8 from 35 balls, pushed forward to Haggett. Raine and McKay (1) dug in, with the latter facing 41 balls before unluckily dragging Coles on to his leg stump before Freckingham (1) was trapped lbw by the returning Haggett.

Raine hit a couple of fours in the 42^nd over and he was unbeaten alongside Shreck (0* from 14 balls) when bad light brought about an end to proceedings at 6.40pm.

Bowling figures: McKay 17-3-54-2, Raine 20-5-57-2, Shreck 11.4-2-50-3, Freckingham 6-1-32-3.