KENT’S unbeaten championship record and the result of this, their ninth Frizzell Division 1 game, hangs precariously in the balance in Canterbury as visitors Sussex hit back on an action-packed third day that saw 20 wickets fall.

A day that started with Kent capitulating in their first innings ended with the hosts hanging on for their lives as they reached 97 for six in pursuit of a victory target of 186.

In between times, Sussex had struggled against the combination as Amjad Khan’s pace and Min Patel’s left-arm spin as the visitors succumbed in their second innings for only 155 and in the space of 56 overs.

In a poor early morning show under overcast skies Kent lost their four remaining first-innings wickets for 22 runs in the space of eight overs to miss out on a fourth batting bonus point by two runs.

Pakistan’s Mushtaq Ahmed and Naved-ul-Hasan proved the Kent tormentors with three wickets apiece as the hosts caved in for 348 to concede a first innings deficit of 30 runs.

With the cloud cover burning off, Sussex struggled to find an answer to the Khan and Patel combination as Kent set about dismissing them in the space of 219 minutes.

Michael Yardy (34) and Chris Adams (31) were the only players to pass 30 as Khan bagged four for 39 and Patel three for 27.

Andrew Hall worked up a good head of steam to root out Richard Montgomerie and Tim Ambrose while Martin Saggers began the rout with the wicket of first innings centurion Ian Ward to Niall O’Brien’s first of three catches.

On a wearing and slightly unpredictable pitch Kent faced the prospect of keeping out ace wrist spinner Ahmed for the remaining 36 overs of the day.

They had the worst of starts when out-of-sorts skipper David Fulton edged a James Kirtley lifter to his Sussex counterpart Adams at second slip then, four overs later, Martin van Jaarsveld shouldered arms to an off-cutter from the same bowler to go leg before.

Rob Key (31) and Matthew Walker (32) restored a semblance of normality with a third wicket stand of 54 in 15 overs, but the demise of Walker sparked the third and possibly costliest collapse of the day.

The Kent vice-skipper obligingly pulled an Ahmed full-toss into the hands of Murray Goodwin at mid-wicket then, to the very next ball, Darren Stevens charged down the pitch to york himself a give Ambrose a stumping.

Naved then returned for another hostile spell down the Nackington Road slope to winkle out Key to a spliced pull shot then Hall (12) to one that appeared to brush the gloves.

Patel and O’Brien rode their luck in surviving through to stumps but the remaining 89 runs required for victory may well prove beyond them come the fourth day of judgement.

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 c O’Brien b Cook 83
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 21
J D Lewry c Saggers b Cook 4
Extras 35

Total 378 all out after 112.1 overs

Fall of wicket: 1-65, 2-79, 3-210, 4-211, 5-235, 6-240, 7-291, 8-298, 9-370.

Bowling: Saggers 20-1-65-1, Khan 15-1-65-1, Hall 24-1-73-2, Cook 24.1-11-57-3, Stevens 19-2-43-1, Patel 10-1-51-1.

Kent first innings

D P Fulton c Ambrose b Lewry 1
R W T Key c Adams b Lewry 74
M van Jaarsveld b Ahmed 32
D I Stevens b Naved-ul-Hasan 50
A J Hall c Yardy b Kirtley 68
M J Walker not out 55
N J O’Brien b Martin-Jenkins 34
M M Patel b Ahmed 9
S J Cook lbw b Naved 9
M J Saggers b Ahmed 6
A Khan not out 0
Extras 10

Total 348 all out after 102.1 overs

Fall of wicket: 1-9, 2-102, 3-142, 4-187, 5-264, 6-321, 7-326, 8-336, 9-348

Bowling: Kirtley 19-6-73-1, Lewry 19-5-63-2, Martin-Jenkins 11-2-24-1, Naved-ul-Hasan 19.1-1-46-3, Mushtaq Ahmed 34-2-134-3.

Sussex second innings

I J Ward c O’Brien b Saggers 3
R R Montgomerie lbw b Hall 17
M H Yardy c Hall b Khan 34
M W Goodwin c Stevens b Patel 26
C J Adams b Patel 31
T R Ambrose lbw b Hall 12
R S C Martin-Jenkins c O’Brien b Patel
Naved-ul-Hasan c O’Brien b Khan 6
Mushtaq Ahmed c van Jaarsveld b Khan 4
R J Kirtley b Khan 0
J D Lewry not out 1
Extras 15

Total 155 all out after 55.3 overs

Fall of wicket: 1-14, 2-34, 3-87, 4-89, 5-116, 7-144, 8-153, 9-154

Bowling: Saggers 8-4-16-1, Khan 10.3-2-39-4, Hall 13-2-44-2, Cook 7-3-19-0, Patel 17-5-27-3.

Kent second innings

D P Fulton c Adams b Kirtley 4
R W T Key c&b Naved 31
M van Jaarsveld lbw b Kirtley 4
M J Walker c Goodwin b Ahmed 32
D I Stevens st Ambrose b Ahmed 0
A J Hall c Ambrose b Naved 12
N J O’Brien not out 6
M M Patel not out 1
Extras 7

Total 97 for six

Fall of wicket: 1-4, 2-14, 3-69, 4-69, 5-85, 6-93,

Bowling: Kirtley 10-3-20-2, Lewry 7-3-10-0, Mushtaq Ahmed 11-3-44-2, Naved 8-2-20-2.