Another disappointing first day has left relegation-threatened Kent with a mountain to climb in their County Championship Division 1 game against Essex at Chelmsford.

The hosts, steered by opening batsman Sir Alastair Cook, put themselves into a commanding position by the end of Wednesday’s play, with Essex 106-0 after the visitors had been bowled all out for 207 in two short sessions.

Only a sedate 58-run fourth-wicket partnership between Ben Compton, who recorded an 81-ball 47, and captain Jack Leaning (27) interrupted a regular clatter of wickets, with nagging seamers Sam Cook (3-19) and Jamie Porter (3-47) sharing six of them equally.

Kent batsman Tawanda Muyeye survived a decent chance to Matt Critchley at third slip before he was beaten for pace to present Cook with his first on 21.

Next ball, Joe Denly’s miserable campaign continued when he played down the wrong line and was caught behind for his fourth duck of the season.

To compound Kent’s problems, Harry Finch faced 15 deliveries without scoring and then set off for a non-existent single to gully where Paul Walter swooped and hit the single stump he could see.

Compton and Leaning settled in for a stand that needed 17 overs to put on 50 and saw Compton hit Doug Bracewell (1-42) for three successive boundaries, two through the covers, the other a flick off his legs.

However, from the last ball before lunch, Compton attempted to dig out a fuller delivery from Simon Harmer (1-73) and only succeeded in chipping the ball back tamely to the bowler.

Leaning followed soon after lunch when he got a thick edge to one from Cook which went away from him and wicketkeeper Adam Rossington took a fine diving catch to his right. Joey Evison went shouldering arms to one that came back late from Bracewell for 11.

Grant Stewart smashed Harmer for two straight sixes in a brisk, seven-over stand of 43 with Jordan Cox, before Porter found a peach of a ball to remove Cox for 31.

Porter then set a short-ball trap for Italian international Stewart who hooked straight to one of an army on the boundary and, two balls later, Matt Quinn (4) skied rashly to midwicket.

Indian Arshdeep Singh swept Critchley (1-16) for a huge six but wafted lazily at the next ball and was stumped without bothering to look back for eight.

When Essex replied, 38-year-old Cook slipped into imperious mode after a watchful start, showing an array of shots around the wicket in depositing Stewart (0-34) for three successive fours, though he was put down off the same bowler to a sharp chance at gully.

Of the 50-run partnership in 17 overs, Cook contributed 38 with Nick Browne playing second fiddle with a dozen, of the century partnership Browne had 27, while Cook had moved to 63.

Cook passed 50 for the fifth time this season when he swept Hamid Qadri (0-16) for his 10th boundary.

Compton said: “You’re facing a difficult task here because you’re faced with multiple threats.

“It’s a very dry wicket, a used wicket, so you’re inclination is to bat first because Essex’s threat with the ball is Harmer, especially on a dry wicket, so you try to go in first.

“But Essex are also excellent exponents with the new ball. That is the scenario you are faced with.

“It did a bit in the morning and they bowled nicely and took a few wickets. We had a few partnerships that didn’t quite perhaps take it as far as we would have liked. We just didn’t build any momentum for long enough.

“It was a tough day and, at the end, we were probably a bit inconsistent with the ball, as we were with our batting.

“I’m not sure if when Jack and I were out was the turning point, but we actually had a bit of momentum there and we just lost it at the wrong time. That kept them in the game constantly and wickets were falling fairly regularly after that.

“So that partnership was key and it was unfortunate that it ended when it did.

“We’ve just got to try and find a way of taking 10 wickets tomorrow and seeing where it takes us.

“I think we have to take a minute to reflect and try and understand what we did and what we can do better.

“There are three days of cricket and we must focus on that and not feel sorry for ourselves.

“We need to come tomorrow with a very clear plan of what we want to do. That is the only way to go about it. We’ve got to understand what we did, what we can do and then come back tomorrow.

“That’s four-day cricket. There’s not too much time to over-assess.”

Essex will be reinforced with the inclusion of Dan Lawrence in their batting line-up on day two as he returns after being the spare man in the England XI for the concurrent fourth Test at Old Trafford.

He will replace 21-year-old Robin Das.