Promoted Leicestershire dominate youthful Kent
Rishi Patel's hundred was his second of the season in the Championship
- Published
Rothesay County Championship Division Two, Uptonsteel County Ground, Leicester (day two)
Leicestershire 459-7 dec: Patel 114, Cox 93, Masood 90; Evison 3-67
Kent 17-0: Finch 9*, Dawkins 8*
Leicestershire 5 pts, Kent 2 pts
A fine century from Rishi Patel, along with 90s from Shan Masood and Ben Cox, saw Leicestershire secure maximum batting bonus points and left them the verge of the Division Two title as they dominated a callow Kent attack after being put into bat at the UptonSteel County Ground.
Beginning the match 25 points clear of second placed Glamorgan, the Foxes could not have hoped for a better second day of this County Championship match after the first was entirely lost to the weather.
It made for a chastening first-class debut for 19-year-old all-rounder Corey Flintoff - one of a remarkable five teenagers in the Kent side - who with father Andrew watching bowled 15 wicket-less overs for 91 runs, though he did take a catch.
Kent openers Harry Finch and Ben Dawkins survived a difficult nine overs before the light closed in.
Corey Flintoff is making his Championship debut for Kent
After the strong winds that made handling the covers too dangerous to undertake on day one, it was a relief to see the ground ready for play from the start.
Flintoff, the second son of former England all-rounder Andrew to be embarking on a career as a professional cricketer, following in the footsteps of brother Rocky, took his place in what must surely have been the youngest slip cordon ever formed in county cricket, all three slips and gully being in their teens.
They were in the game early, when Jaydn Denly at second slip dropped a straightforward chance given by Sol Budinger off the bowling of Joey Evison.
To make matters Denly left the field with illness soon afterwards, while Evison's feelings will not have improved when Budinger casually swung an inswinger over the midwicket boundary for six.
The Kent all-rounder had his revenge soon afterwards however, when Budinger again edged to second slip and this time Flintoff held on.
Patel, however, looked in good touch from the start. The 27-year-old has struggled for consistency this season after missing the early weeks with a thumb injury, but has recently shown signs of finding the form which saw him called into an England Lions training camp, and he took full toll on the regular loose deliveries from the visiting attack.
There were plenty of testing balls too, and George Garrett produced a beauty to square up and bowl Ian Holland, but a score of 151-2 off 30 overs at lunch told its own story.
Having hit 10 boundaries in going to his half century, Patel hit another 10 in going to three figures, his second championship century of the season, shortly after lunch.
Kent were already looking down the barrel, but Patel played too soon at an Ekansh Singh delivery and got a leading edge that looped to mid-on, a maiden first-class wicket for the 19-year-old, and Hill, having registered his seventh half-century of the season, slashed a wide short ball from Michael Cohen straight to point.
When Steve Eskinazi, who never settled, went leg before to Evison, Leicestershire were in danger of wasting their flying start, but the elegant Masood was calmness personified, and he found lively support from Cox.
Together they added 161 for the sixth wicket and both seemed certain to reach three figures, but Garrett, bowling with the new ball, pushed one across Masood to find an edge which carried to slip before Grant Stewart took a fine leaping catch at mid-on to dismiss Cox off the bowling of Evison, prompting a declaration.
Report supplied by ECB Reporters' Network, supported by Rothesay
'Rishi is a high-class player' - reaction
Leicestershire batsman Lewis Hill:
"It was a great day for us. We were a little bit surprised to be put in - we would have batted - but there was a bit of green to the pitch, and the ball did swing a little, though mostly because of the wind.
"Rishi [Patel] hasn't had the season he'd have wanted but class is permanent, and he's a high-class player. They had an inexperienced attack, but they bowled plenty of good balls and you still have to apply yourself.
"Shan [Masood} and Ben [Cox] were the right men to come in and see us to 450, and for neither of them to get a hundred was a bit gutting. But we maximised our return from the innings, which is the most we could have asked for."
Kent debutant Olly Curtiss:
"It was a tough day but a good experience! Receiving my cap before the start felt great - I found out on the evening before the game I'd be playing but I felt quite calm and relaxed.
"It helped I've been playing with some of the younger lads for quite a few years now. To be bowling against someone as good as Shan Masood was a reminder of what this is all about, and you can only learn from it.
"There was a bit there for the bowlers in the first session and perhaps we didn't quite capitalise on it. We'll have to apply ourselves with the bat, which is what Harry {Finch] and Ben [Dawkins] did in getting through those last few overs."
