Kent head coach Matt Walker cut a frustrated figure after they quickly succumbed to a 10-wicket defeat at Surrey in the LV= County Championship on Saturday.

After losing three wickets in the last 15 balls of day two, Kent lost two more top-order batsmen within the first four overs of day three and never looked like dragging the game out to after lunch.

“I think probably the last three overs last night when we lost three wickets was the big difference in this match,” said Walker.

“Up until then we were right in the game but to go from 78-1, after Tawanda Muyeye and Zak Crawley had batted really well, to 80-4 at the close of play was when things changed.

“It’s a very disappointing loss but Tom Lawes was outstanding with the ball this morning and it was a bit of a procession in the end.

“That’s very frustrating for us because it’s been a pattern of the season so far. We play well in patches but then have a period where we lose a few wickets quickly or bowl poorly for a spell.

“In this match we fought hard to get ourselves back in it with the bat in the first innings and got a reasonable total on the board, and then we had them 200-7 and we were actually looking at perhaps getting a first innings lead.

“But Sean Abbott batted very well and Gus Atkinson came in to take it away from us and they ended up getting a bigger lead than we would have liked.

“Tawanda and Zak were outstanding to get us back almost level last night, before those three late wickets. It all happened very quickly, last night and then this morning, and so it’s a tough defeat to take even though Surrey are obviously a very strong side, the champions and top of Division One again in this first part of this season.”

Tom Lawes finished with a career-best 5-22 after removing both Zak Crawley and Sam Billings in the opening exchanges of day three.

Billings bagged a pair in the game, only lasting six balls before edging a sharp lifter to keeper Ben Foakes. The Kent captain is enduring a miserable season so far, with only 92 runs from 10 championship innings and a top score of 31.

Lawes then removed Crawley in his second full over. The England Test opener pushed defensively at a fine ball which left him just enough to take the edge on its way into Ollie Pope’s hands at second slip.

And another excellent piece of bowling soon earned Lawes his third scalp of the day, a pacy inswinging near-yorker plucking out Joey Evison’s off stump on five to leave Kent 107-7.

Sean Abbott, replacing Dan Worrall at the Vauxhall End, then had Jordan Cox caught down the leg side by Foakes for 15, fending off a short ball, and it was left to Jordan Clark to replace Lawes at the Pavilion End and apply the finishing touches to Kent’s sad rout.

Clark’s fourth ball saw Grant Stewart (6) edge to Pope at second slip and last man Michael Hogan lost his off stump, wafting at Clark in the big seamer’s next over, to go for two. It gave Clark second innings figures of 3-36, and six wickets in the match, while Abbott took 2-17.

Surrey then reached 58-0 in 11.3 overs to wrap up the game before lunch, with Rory Burns reverse-slapping Jack Leaning’s off spin for six over third man in a run-a-ball 36 not out. Dom Sibley was unbeaten on 16.