Floodlight failure scuppers Kent chase

Kent's outside hopes of qualifying for the Yorkshire Bank 40 semi-finals were ended as floodlight failure caused them to lose their penultimate Group A game to Warwickshire by seven runs under the Duckworth/Lewis method.

Pursuing 214 for victory at Canterbury, Kent had reached 113 for 4 after 24.3 overs - nine runs shy of the Duckworth/Lewis par score - when generator failure to one of the five floodlights at the St Lawrence ground interrupted proceedings just before 9pm. Talks between the players, umpires and ground officials failed to resolve the issue, and led to the abandonment at 9.20pm due to unsafe conditions.

Kent, who needed a seventh win to stay in contention for the knockout phase, had made a faltering start to their pursuit in losing Rob Key for seven to a simple catch to mid-on with their score on 23. Offspinner Ateeq Javid struck again in his next over, having Sam Northeast caught at short midwicket to leave the hosts in trouble at 36 for 2.

Brendan Nash and Darren Stevens almost doubled Kent's total before Nash, backing away to cut a short delivery from Boyd Rankin, edged to the wicketkeeper. With Stevens and Fabian Cowdrey in full flow, Kent posted 100 by the 21st over but soon after Cowdrey was caught behind down the leg side for six when attempting a paddle against Rikki Clarke.

With Stevens on 42 and Geraint Jones unbeaten on two the floodlight nearest the lime tree failed after a loud bang and, with half the ground in shadow, the players left the field.

Batting first after losing the toss, basement side Warwickshire made a reasonable start through William Porterfield and Varun Chopra, who posted 60 for the first wicket within 14 overs. Kent skipper and England one-day international James Tredwell then disrupted their progress by taking two wickets in consecutive overs from the Pavilion End.

Chopra perished when attempting to reverse sweep, only to top-edge to Brendan Nash at backward square leg. Two runs later Jim Troughton slog swept Tredwell to pick out Northeast on the ropes at deep midwicket and depart for just 1.

Bears' veteran Daren Maddy, who is set to retire next month, scored only 4 before his indecisive prod at an Adam Riley arm ball saw him depart leg before to make it 76 for 3 at the mid-point of the Warwickshire innings.

Porterfield looked set to anchor the visitors' innings with a chanceless 70-ball half-century with three fours and a six but, nine balls later, he perished for a well compiled 57. Aiming to drive at former England Under-19 left-arm seamer Adam Ball, Porterfield miscued high to cover where Stevens took a well-judged catch to reduce the visitors to 112 for 4.

The Bears regrouped with a fifth-wicket stand of 69 in 8.4 overs between Clarke and Javid until both fell in consecutive overs. Having muscled eight fours in his stay, Clarke drove on the up against Mitch Claydon to be caught at long-off, then Javid's 44-ball innings ended when he went leg before shovelling across the line to Stevens.

Steffan Piolet gifted Stevens a second wicket when he was bowled heaving to leg in the penultimate over to leave Kent facing an asking rate of 5.35 an over for victory.