Kent assistant coach Matt Walker has put pressure on his batsmen to start performing and take advantage of the match-winning positions the bowlers put them in after their eight-wicket defeat at home to Derbyshire this week.

Matt Coles took 5-24 to help fire Kent to an unlikely first-innings lead as Derbyshire were bowled out for 86.

A second-innings collapse saw the hosts lose eight wickets for just 39 runs to allow the opposition back into the game.

Walker said: "We didn’t bat brilliantly in the first innings but the bowlers again got us in an incredible position. We all feel a bit hollow that we didn’t take our opportunity to win the game.

"You can’t fault the bowlers’ effort – they kept coming again and again and got us a chance of setting up a good total to defend and it never happened. We couldn’t believe we got a 120 lead on that sort of wicket and it is frustrating that we didn’t take advantage. It has happened a few times this year.

"We get ourselves in winning positions and just through lack of runs we don’t put pressure on the opposition."

Walker also said that the key to winning games in the championship was to get the whole team clicking and working together.

He said: "We know with the ability of the bowlers to take 20 wickets in the game that if we do get our batting right and start getting runs through the middle order and putting big scores together then we will start putting wins together.

"We know if we start getting 400 in our first innings and just generally batting better over the course of a four-day game, we will be a good side as we have the bowlers now to threaten any team.

"You always feel hollow about these sort of games because you get in such a position with one side of your team and then unfortunately the other side doesn’t quite click."

The team have to put this result behind them and move on, according to Walker, and they know their performance wasn’t good enough.

Walker said: "It was a painful death in a way and it almost looked inevitable after the way we batted.

"No-one likes losing but sometimes you just have to deal with that and, as frustrated as you feel, you have got to move on quickly."