Report

Yorkshire slump in Coles' haul

The second new ball coupled with some poor shot selection prompted a fairly abrupt end to the Yorkshire innings as the visitors succumbed for 247 in Canterbury.

Mark Pennell at Canterbury
26-Apr-2012
Kent 4 for 0 trail Yorkshire 247 (Coles 4-70) by 243 runs
The second new ball coupled with some poor shot selection prompted a fairly abrupt end to the Yorkshire innings as the visitors succumbed for 247 at Canterbury.
Having initially tried and failed to grind their way to a reasonable total, by late afternoon Yorkshire opted simply to flail - and they duly paid the price by losing a rash of cheap wickets.
They lost the toss and Yorkshire set out their stall to dog it out for the day. Strokemaking was at a premium as they added only 52 in the 30-over opening session.
Openers Joe Root and Joe Sayers had only 23 on the board when Sayers, having batted 77 minutes for his 12 runs, opted to shoulder arms at a Matt Coles offcutter that clipped the top of off.
Root's decision to play back and across the line to a Darren Stevens inswinger proved equally fatal some 18 runs later. The run-rate quickened a little after lunch, yet still no batsman could go on after making a start, indeed Gary Ballance proved to be top-scorer with a modest 38.
Captain Andrew Gale got a good one from Mark Davies and nicked to the keeper then Phil Jacques took the same option as Root against Stevens and also went leg before. Jonny Bairstow played a couple of cracking drives, one of which flashed through mid-on for four to post the Yorkshire 100, but he failed to capitalise on a life when on 12.
Dropped at second slip by James Tredwell off the bowling of Coles, he added only 20 more before needlessly driving on the up against the same bowler only to pick out Sam Northeast at short extra cover.
A useful stand of 51 between Tim Bresnan and Ballance came to an end when offspinner James Tredwell darted one in to trap Bresnan leg before, but it was the new cherry that led to a secondary collapse that saw three wickets fall for seven runs in the space of 17 deliveries.
With only the third delivery Charlie Shreck nipped one back through the gate to peg back Ballance's middle pole then Shreck found more seam movement to have Adil Rashid caught at the wicket. Then despite a deep fielder being stationed out on the leg-side Ajmal Shahzad still could not help play his favoured pick-up off his legs and picked out Brendan Nash with unerring accuracy.
Last pair Steven Patterson and Ryan Sidebottom added a valuable 19, some 17 of them through the uncultivated strokeplay of Sidebottom, before he was cleaned up by Coles - the pick of the Kent attack with 4 for 70.
The leading wicket-taker in the country, Coles now has 23 victims to his name having spent the close-season on the England Performance Programme, which also included an appearance for the Lions. More muscular and a touch wiser than last season, Coles now cuts an imposing figure. Bowling back of a length and at a decent lick, he reminds the locals of their former Kentish firebrand Martin McCague.
The Kent openers Sam Northeast, in for the injured Rob Key, and on-loan Scott Newman came out to survive the day's final over and reduce the deficit by four without much alarm.
Bresnan piled on the pressure by packing the close field but, bowling to three slips, two gulleys and a short leg, sent down a first ball wide and handful of looseners to let Kent off the hook.

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