Kent fold on fourth morning as Derbyshire maintain top-two form

Luis Reece led Derbyshire's victory charge as they rolled over Kent before lunch on the final day of the Rothesay County Championship Division Two match at Derby. The allrounder picked up two wickets to claim outstanding figures of 3 for 21 from 10 overs with Derbyshire beating the visitors by an innings and 14 runs

After Zak Chappell struck with the first ball of the day, Kent folded in feeble fashion, losing four wickets in eight overs, to slump to 247 for 9, the injured Jake Ball unable to bat.

It was Derbyshire's second win of the season which takes them above Glamorgan to second in the table while Kent have now lost four matches in a row.

Kent's slide to another defeat started when Tawanda Muyeye was caught behind taking on a short ball from Chappell. Muyeye clearly thought it had come off his shoulder but given his side were still 104 runs behind with three wickets already down, it was not a great shot for the situation.

That was a straightforward catch for Brooke Guest but the wicketkeeper took a much sharper one five overs later standing up to Luis Reece when Chris Benjamin pushed forward and edged into his gloves.

Kent's hopes of at least frustrating Derbyshire now rested with Jack Leaning and Harry Finch but the pair were quickly parted with Reece celebrating a second success of the morning. Leaning failed to get over a drive and substitute fielder Nick Potts took a good tumbling catch diving forward at deep mid-off.

Derbyshire were now all over the visitors and in the next over, Finch went to turn Anuj Dal off his legs but the ball came off his thigh pad and onto the stumps.

Matt Parkinson had resisted well as nightwatcher in the first innings but this time he lasted only seven balls before he went half forward to Jack Morley and was lbw. Grant Stewart struck some muscular blows , pulling Pat Brown for six, but the end came 15 minutes before the interval when he sliced the fast bowler to third man where Potts pulled off a superb diving catch.