Kent batsmen pummel Glamorgan

Glamorgan 260 and 16 for 1 trail Kent 488 (Bell-Drummond 84, Denly 58, Stevens 58, Claydon 55, Latham 53) by 212 runs
Scorecard

Dogged by bad weather and unplayable conditions that wiped out six of their first eight days action in this summer's County Championship, Kent have seemingly decided to take their frustrations out on Glamorgan. At the mid-point of this, their first home game of the campaign, Kent look well set for their first victory against their winless opposition.

After banking a 224-run first innings lead and five batting bonus points, Kent picked up the wicket of Jacques Rudolph for a duck in the final half-hour of the day leaving the visitors on 16 for 1 at stumps and facing a mountain to climb simply to save the game.

Resuming on their overnight score of 124 without loss, Kent batted on throughout the majority of a cloudy and chilly Bank Holiday Monday, with Tom Latham, Joe Denly, Darren Stevens and Mitch Claydon adding half-centuries to the one Daniel Bell-Drummond scored on Sunday.

After an opening stand of 131, their best for three seasons, Kent lost overseas player Latham and top-scorer Bell-Drummond in quick succession and to near-identical dismissals. Both will have been disappointed by hard-handed, leaden-footed, back-foot pokes that resulted in catches behind the wicket.

Two down at lunch, Kent lost 3 for 6 inside six overs after the resumption as Glamorgan's seamers took advantage of the cloudy overhead conditions. But with the floodlights on, Kent's middle order began to shine in the form of an enterprising sixth-wicket stand of 78 between Stevens and understudy keeper Adam Rouse.

Stevens broke the stranglehold of Michael Hogan, the pick of Glamorgan's attack with 4 for 91, and Craig Meschede, with some belligerent hitting on his way to a 58-ball fifty. Stevens hit three sixes, including a mammoth pull shot that landed in the construction site near the Old Dover Road that will become retirement flats by next June. A new ball was needed.

Rouse and Stevens fell in quick succession with their side almost 100 ahead, but Kent were by no means finished as Claydon and Matt Coles joined forces to take up Stevens' mantle.

Though he was dropped on 5, Claydon's lusty back-foot smears resulted in a fourth first-class fifty from 47 balls, while Coles also cleared the ropes in his cameo 29 only to perish to the very next delivery. Swinging his not inconsiderable weight off his own feet, he was almost fully prone by the time his middle stump went cartwheeling.

In the day's final exchanges and with drizzle in the air, Rudolph pushed hesitantly inside the line of a Stevens' legcutter to feather a catch to the keeper and depart without scoring. The rain strengthened forcing an early finish to spare Glamorgan from further punishment.