Gay cracks second career century as honours end even on day one at Kent

Emilio Gay hit 112 after the visitors lost Ricardo Vasconcelos to the first ball of the day and Ryan Rickleton was the next highest scorer with 55, but having reached 205 for two, they lost their next eight wickets for 98 runs.

Matt Milnes had Kent’s best bowling figures with three for 47, while Joe Denly took two for 31 and Matt Quinn two for 51.

The 170th Canterbury Festival began with the temperature already over 25 degrees in the shade and in the day’s least surprising development, Northamptonshire chose to bat after winning the toss.

The pitch, however, didn’t look benign early on.

Vasconcelos went for a platinum duck off the first ball of the match when he was caught behind off Quinn and Rickleton and Gay then endured a torrid hour, during which they struggled to score at over two an over.

Both survived, however, and as the session ground on, the runs came more freely, leaving the visitors on 95 for one at lunch.

An elegant cover drive off Milnes took Rickleton to 50 just after the restart, but he then edged the same bowler behind.

It was otherwise a session of few chances.

Luke Procter was dropped at leg slip when on 12 off Linde and Gay reached his century with a glanced two off George Linde, but he fell in the penultimate over before tea.

Kent skipper Sam Billings threw the ball to occasional red-ball spinner Joe Denly and his second ball was pulled to Linde at mid-wicket, leaving Northants on 206 for three at the interval.

Denly struck again soon after the resumption, getting Procter caught and bowled for 33 and Jack Leaning then bowled Rob Keogh for six.

The new ball accounted for Josh Cobb who went for nine. He tried to cut Milnes and was caught by Ben Compton at point.

Milnes then splayed Jimmy Neesham’s off and middle stumps, bowling the New Zealander for 33 on his first-class debut for Northants, before Quinn bowled Lewis McManus for four.

Ben Sanderson made 23 from 18 balls before he edged Grant Stewart and fell to a juggling catch by Billings and George Linde wrapped up the innings by bowling Simon Kerrigan for seven with the final ball of the day, leaving Jack White unbeaten on six.