Kent survive scare to secure win

Yasir Arafat finished 19 not out to see Kent to victory

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Kent wrapped up a maximum-points win over Yorkshire at Canterbury with more than half a day to spare but not before a few nerve-jangling moments as the visitors made them work hard for their 140-run winning total.

A home victory, Kent's third in the LV County Championship First Division this season and their second in succession, looked assured when the home county went in at lunch on 101 for four with in-form Martin van Jaarsveld on 41 together with fellow South African Justin Kemp on 10.

But Yorkshire hit back to take three wickets for seven runs inside three overs after the interval and set alarm bells ringing among a modest last-day crowd at the St Lawrence Ground.

Van Jaarsveld went leg before to a Rana Naved slower ball first delivery after the break then, five balls later, Kemp edged through to wicketkeeper Gerard Brophy.

With 32 still needed Rana had his former Pakistan team-mate Azhar Mahmood caught behind off a thin edge and, at 108 for seven, Kent were in real danger of tossing away their winning position.

Thankfully for tense home supporters Yasir Arafat and Geraint Jones showed cooler heads thereafter, teaming up in an unbroken eighth-wicket stand that added 34 in five overs to see their side home.

Jones finished unbeaten with 20 from 26 balls while man-of-the-match Arafat, who took six wickets in the game and contributed 109 runs, finished it with a cover-driven four off Rana to reach an unbeaten 19.

Kent's pursuit had started briskly at the start of the final day when Joe Denly took three boundaries off Tim Bresnan's first over, but then Denly edged a decent ball from Matthew Hoggard into the slip cordon and Rob Key was also squared up by the England paceman with one that nipped away off the seam, brushed the edge and flew through to the keeper.

James Tredwell and Darren Stevens went just before lunch to spinner Adil Rashid to increase pressure on the home middle order, but Jones and Arafat proved up to the task.