KENT recovered from an inauspicious start to restrict Sussex to 357 for eight on their return to Frizzell Championships action on a glorious day in Canterbury.

Making their first championship appearance at headquarters since May 14, Kent caused much head-shaking when their skipper David Fulton invited the Division 1 strugglers to bat after winning the toss.

Working on the theory that this pitch had got wet during last Tuesday’s rain ruined Twenty20 game between these two sides, Fulton backed his four top seamers to make inroads in the first hour of the day.

Once Sussex reached 60 without loss the decision was already being questioned, particularly as Fulton’s side had made such a scrappy start to the game.

New ball pairing Amjad Khan and Martin Saggers were not at their best, though Saggers bowled better to the left-handed Ian ward, and Niall O’Brien’s early glovework was scrappy behind the stumps.

To make matters worse, Ward moved to nine with a hooked six off Khan only to be dropped low down at third slip by Darren Stevens two balls later.

Kent’s luck appeared to change in the 21st over when they were gifted their first wicket with a run out.

Ward squeezed a full-length ball from Simon Cook to backward point and set off for the single but Richard Montgomerie was slow out of the non-striker’s blocks and sent packing by Matthew Walker’s direct hit.

Three overs later Khan ran one away off the seam to left-hander Michael Yardy that feathered off stump to make it 79 for two.

Ward and Zimbabwean Kolpak signing Murray Goodwin dug in either side of lunch with a profitable, yet dreary third wicket stand worth 131 in 37 overs.

With Khan incapacitated with a headache, both batsmen appeared content to await the occasional wayward delivery on a pitch that had now dried and therefore eased after baking under three hours sunshine.

There were few shots to linger in the memory during the two and half hours the pair were together as Ward picked up eight fours to move to his first championship ton in 11 months from 172-balls.

The Sky Sports pundit failed to add thereafter and a top-edged hook against Andrew Hall was well held by Fulton over his shoulder running back from mid-wicket.

In his next over Hall removed the limpet-like Goodwin for 63 from 136 balls with a well-pitched leg-cutter that brushed the edge and flew to O’Brien.

In the over before tea Stevens blotted his copybook for a second time when he downed a one-handed return catch off his own bowling from Chris Adams, with the Sussex skipper on only seven at the time.

The interval helped break Sussex concentration and resolve as Kent went on to take four wickets in the final session of the day to partially vindicate Fulton’s decision to insert the opposition.

Khan returned to bowl with hostility and was unlucky not to remove Adams, while Patel and Stevens chipped in with vital wickets.

Tim Ambrose fell to the first ball of the resumption, a Simon Cook yorker and, within three overs, Kent were celebrating again when Martin Saggers found the edge following a leaden-footed push at an away-swinger for O’Brien to pull off a low catch diving to his right.

Rana Naved swiped at a wide one from Patel to give O’Brien a third catch then Mushtaq Ahmed mistimed his defensive push to clip back an over-head return catch to bowler Stevens.

Kent claimed the second new ball after 90 overs, but Adams and James Kirtley held firm, Adams reaching a fortuitous, unbeaten 79 by the close.

SCORECARD

Sussex first innings

I J Ward c Fulton b Hall 100

R R Montgomerie run out (Walker) 21

M H Yardy b Khan 6

M W Goodwin c O’Brien b Hall 63

C J Adams not out 79

T R Ambrose b Cook 13

R S Martin-Jenkins c O’Brien b Saggers 2

Rana Naved c O’Brien b Patel 23

Mushtaq Ahmed c &b Stevens 7

R J Kirtley not out 11

Extras 32

Total 357 for eight after 104 overs

Fall of wicket: 1-65, 2-79, 3-210, 4-211, 5-235, 6-240, 7-291, 8-298

Bowling: Saggers 20-1-65-1, Khan 15-1-65-1, Hall 20-1-59-2, Cook 20-10-51-1, Stevens 19-2-43-1, Patel 10-1-51-1.