LV County Championship

HAD yesterday's play been a Sherlock Holmes story, it might have been entitled The Curious Case of Rana Naved-ul-Hasan.

The curiosity was that the Pakistan pace bowler served up a sizeable amount of dross during an opening spell of five overs for 37 runs before returning to take 3-0 in 14 balls during an outstanding second burst that transformed the contest in Yorkshire's favour.

Bowling from the Trafalgar Square end in the dying throes of a third day dominated largely by Kent, Rana bowled Neil Dexter and night-watchman Martin Saggers and then had Darren Stevens caught at short-leg as the visitors subsided from 262-2 to 268-5.

It meant that instead of going into the final day with high hopes of forcing a draw, Kent face an almighty battle to save the match as they resume on 273-5 – effectively 43-5 after Yorkshire gained a first innings advantage of 230.

Yorkshire were thus rewarded for good honest determination – not least that of captain Darren Gough, who persevered with a bowler who has produced some ordinary fare in recent weeks.

Rana has seemingly made as much of an impact with the bat as the ball since joining the county and has yet to fully win over the club's supporters. Prior to Rana's late salvo, which lit up a grey and chilly evening, it had been a day of frustration for Gough and his men – the cricketing equivalent of being stuck in a traffic jam.

No sooner did the obstacles in front of Yorkshire appear to be clearing than the home team's progress juddered to a standstill.

Consequently, the intended destination of a third County Championship victory of the season had begun to look ever more distant as Kent rolled up their sleeves and decided to make a game of it.

Yorkshire resumed on 409-7 in their first innings, a lead of 182, and lost a wicket to the sixth ball of the morning when Adil Rashid was trapped lbw by one from Amjad Khan that nipped back sharply from the Trafalgar Square end.

Rashid failed to add to his overnight 43 and progress to what would have been only his third Championship half-century of the summer.

Matthew Hoggard was caught at second slip as Yorkshire slipped to 417-9 before Gough and Deon Kruis combined in a last-wicket stand of 40 that blended luck, skill and plenty of long handle.

Both batsmen were dropped and Kruis was bowled off a no-ball before Gough finally picked out square-leg, with Kent doing themselves no favours by conceding 38 runs in no-balls and wides during an innings in which they also grassed half-a-dozen chances.

Kent began their second innings shortly after noon with a minimum of 80 overs left in the day and lost Robert Key in the seventh over, caught at first slip by Jacques Rudolph off Hoggard.

It looked like being the catalyst for some incisive work by Yorkshire during the afternoon session, but matters did not turn out as planned as the home team toiled in vain and without much luck.

It might have been a different story had Andrew Gale held a relatively comfortable catch at third-man that would have removed Joe Denly off Rana and left Kent 55-2, but another 100 runs had been added to the score before Yorkshire finally picked up their second wicket, Denly caught at second slip by Anthony McGrath off Hoggard.

Denly's 66, made from 120 balls with nine fours, completed a statistically impressive game after he made 50 in the first innings, but the opener did not look entirely convincing in either outing.

Denly was given a thorough working-over yesterday by Gough and almost fell to Rashid when he spooned a drive just over Hoggard at deep mid-off.

But Denly's second-wicket partnership of 132 in 34 overs with Neil Dexter was a gritty effort and helped ensure that Kent did not roll over tamely for a second time.

Dexter, born in Johannesburg, became the third South African to make a century in the match after Rudolph and Martin van Jaarsveld when he struck Kruis to the mid-off boundary – a blow that also lifted Kent into the lead.

Dexter's was a fine innings, the highlight a six over long-off off Rashid that sent spectators scurrying for cover at the front of the pavilion.

Van Jaarsveld played well for an undefeated 61 and he would appear to be Kent's last hope of getting out of trouble.

DIISPLAY OF THE DAY

Neil Dexter

Made 105 from 224 balls with nine fours and a six as Kent mounted a fightback at the Scarborough Festival.