Kent v Glamorgan: Bell-Drummond ton boosts hosts
Sunday 10th May 2015
Kent opening batsman Daniel Bell-Drummond struck his second LV= County Championship century in five days to give his side a solid base for their four-day clash with Glamorgan.
The 21-year-old, fresh from his 103 against Leicestershire in Canterbury on Wednesday, mastered a very different pitch at the Spitfire Ground, St Lawrence to post a season’s best 123 in Kent’s first-day total of 330 for eight from 95.1 overs.
Batting first on an unusually green pitch that had been cut to 5mm, rather than the 3mm norm here, Bell-Drummond soon looked at home on the surface to feature in a season’s best opening stand with Joe Denly (30).
The pair added 68 before Denly became the sole casualty of the first session. Fencing at a Michael Hogan leg-cutter, he edged to third slip to be caught low down by Jacques Rudolph. Bell-Drummond joined forces with Brendan Nash to add a further 66 either side of lunch before Nash, the former West Indies Test batsman, perished during an excellent seven-over stint of one for 12 from the Nackington Road End.
Aiming to drive, the left-hander edged to the keeper and trudged off castigating his own shot selection. Sam Northeast, Kent’s acting captain in the absence of Rob Key who asked to be omitted following a run of poor form stretching back to last summer, followed soon after for eight.
Having hit half-centuries in Kent’s opening three fixtures, Northeast played around a Craig Meschede off-cutter and went lbw to make it 145 for three. Fabian Cowdrey, Key’s replacement in the home batting order, had 14 to his name when he drove loosely against David Lloyd and feathered a regulation catch into the gloves of Mark Wallace.
The hosts re-grouped either side of the tea break through Bell-Drummond and Darren Stevens, with a fifth-wicket stand worth 85. Bell Drummond pulled a loose one from Meschede for four to the ropes at mid-wicket for a 16th boundary that hoisted his 249-ball century.
The Millfield School prodigy jumped for joy and then removed his helmet to accept the acclaim from the crowd and players’ balcony, but was soon removing his helmet for a very different reason after being hit on the head by an accidental beamer from Lloyd.
Though the delivery was called a no ball by umpire Nick Cook, Bell-Drummond was clearly shaken by events and only continued after treatment and with a replacement helmet.
He was out soon after, leg before when half-forward in defence to the second delivery with the second new ball from Hogan.
Darren Stevens, having just recorded a breezy, chanceless 50 from 75 balls, fell into Rudolph’s leg theory trap by glancing one off his hip from Graham Wagg into the hands of the Glamorgan captain who had just stationed himself at backward short leg.
Sam Billings’ cameo stay for 26 ended when he skied a Meschede bouncer to Chris Cooke at gully, then, in the day’s final over, Calum Haggett fenced at one from the excellent Hogan to again pick out Rudolph in the cordon. Hogan, the pick of Glamorgan’s attack, finished the day with four for 53.