Bairstow and Rashid put Yorkshire back on track

YORKSHIRE'S supporters have learned not to panic when the top-order collapses in undignified style.

Last summer, Yorkshire's last five wickets aggregated more than their first five wickets in nine of the club's 16 completed County Championship innings.

It pointed not so much to the frailties of the recognised batsmen but the fighting qualities of a middle-order/tail that helped keep Yorkshire in Division One.

When Andrew Gale's men slipped from 120-4 to 120-6 in successive balls at Canterbury yesterday in reply to Kent's 317 all out, the hardy band of travelling followers knew better than to fear the worst.

They simply sat back and exchanged knowing glances as Jonathan Bairstow and Adil Rashid compiled a seventh-wicket partnership of 126 that kept Yorkshire in the match as they pursue a third successive Championship win.

Bairstow struck 70 from 172 balls with eight fours and Rashid 59 from 140 balls with six fours in an alliance that married skill with stubbornness.

Although their efforts helped keep Yorkshire afloat, the visitors would have been disappointed overall as Kent closed an absorbing second day with the narrowest of leads.

At stumps, Yorkshire were 280-8 and will need to bowl well today to ensure their fourth-innings target is within manageable proportions on a pitch already showing signs of uneven bounce.

When Bairstow and Rashid came together at 2.45 on a golden, bitterly cold afternoon, Yorkshire were in danger of undoing their hard work of the opening day and surrendering a significant lead.

But so well did the pair play for the next 43 overs that it took the arrival of the second new ball to dislodge them as the shadows lengthened across the St Lawrence ground.

Bairstow got a good one from Amjad Khan that he nicked to third slip, and Rashid received a ball from Azhar Mahmood that kept a little low and trapped him lbw.

Shahzad and David Wainwright – perhaps the best No 9 and No 10 respectively in the country – showed courage and commonsense to negotiate the last eight overs while scoring at four an over with a fluency that belied the match situation.

While those two are at the crease a Yorkshire lead cannot be discounted, but one suspects this game will continue to ebb and flow.

Before another good-sized crowd, Yorkshire required only 11 balls at the start of the day to wrap up the Kent innings after the home side resumed on 313-9.

Tim Bresnan had Amjad Khan lbw to finish with 5-52 from 24.2 overs and thus claim only his fourth five-wicket haul in 92 first-class games, Ajmal Shahzad finishing with 3-65.

Yorkshire slipped to 10-2 in reply as Adam Lyth was caught behind by a diving Geraint Jones and Joe Sayers went lbw to Azhar.

Andrew Gale – batting ahead of Jacques Rudolph because the South African slightly injured his side during the pre-match warm-up – was caught at third slip off Azhar as Yorkshire fell to 44-3 before Anthony McGrath and Rudolph steadied the ship to guide their side into lunch on 76-3.

Six balls after the interval, McGrath was lbw to Darren Stevens for 40, umpire David Millns taking an unacceptable length of time to raise his finger.

McGrath, who looked extremely unhappy with the decision, had been playing well and was left to rue the fact he has now gone 24 Championship innings without a fifty dating back to last June.

Rudolph also looked the part on his way to a composed 38 before he tried to cut a ball from the off-spinner James Tredwell that was too close to him and was caught behind.

That brought Bresnan to the wicket, who proceeded to stun the travelling contingent and no doubt his own team-mates by aiming a brainless hoick at his first delivery from Tredwell that saw him caught at slip to leave Yorkshire in the mire at 120-6.

It left Bairstow and Rashid with an uphill task to repair the damage but repair it they did and in a manner that put most of the top-order to shame.

Bairstow used his feet impressively to counter Tredwell's flight and bounce and went to a gritty half-century from 129 deliveries.

Rashid, typically wristy and inventive, brought up his fifty from 120 balls and weighed in with some handsome strokes – most notably a cut off Amjad that beautifully bisected point and third-man like a tracer bullet.

Kent showed plenty of pluck and bowled well throughout, but few would forecast the outcome of this game with any conviction.

DISPLAY OF THE DAY

Jonathan Bairstow

The young Yorkshire batsman helped rescue his side with a fine knock of 70. He shared in a seventh-wicket partnership of 126 with Adil Rashid (59).

Kent v Yorkshire

Canterbury: Yorkshire (3pts) trail Kent (3) by 37 with 2 first inns wkts standing.

Overnight: Kent 313-9.

Kent First Innings

J L Denly c Sayers b Wainwright 32

R W T Key c Bairstow b Shahzad 5

G O Jones b Bresnan 28

M van Jaarsveld c Bairstow b Bresnan 20

S A Northeast lbw b Wainwright 27

D I Stevens c McGrath b Shahzad 92

J B Hockley c Bresnan b Shahzad 14

J C Tredwell b Bresnan 32

Azhar Mahmood c Rudolph b Bresnan 21

M T Coles not out 6

A Khan lbw b Bresnan 1

Extras b18 lb16 w1 nb4 39

Total (97.2 overs) 317

Fall: 1-28 2-74 3-78 4-131 5-131 6-195 7-284 8-292 9-313.

Bowling: Bresnan 24.2 7 52 5; Shahzad 26 3 65 3; Hannon-Dalby 18 3 59 0; Wainwright 14 4 49 2; McGrath 3 0 18 0; A U Rashid 11 1 39 0; Rudolph 1 0 1 0.

Yorkshire First Innings

A Lyth c G O Jones b Khan 8

J J Sayers lbw b Azhar Mahmood 0

A McGrath lbw b Stevens 40

A W Gale c van Jaarsveld b Azhar Mahmood 13

J A Rudolph c G O Jones b Tredwell 38

J M Bairstow c Hockley b Khan 70

T T Bresnan c van Jaarsveld b Tredwell 0

A U Rashid lbw b Azhar Mahmood 59

A Shahzad not out 12

D J Wainwright not out 16

Extras b5 lb11 nb8 24

Total 8 wkts (92 overs) 280

Fall: 1-8 2-10 3-44 4-84 5-120 6-120 7-246 8-248.

To Bat: O J Hannon-Dalby.

Bowling: Khan 22 7 59 2, Azhar Mahmood 19 4 57 3, Coles 11 0 40 0, Tredwell 18 3 53 2, Stevens 17 3 43 1, van Jaarsveld 5 0 12 0.

Umpires: N G B Cook and D Millns.