Match Preview: Kent v Lancashire LV= CC, 24 – 27 Sept

Kent v Lancashire
LV= County Championship Division Two
24 September – 27 September, 10.30am start.
The Spitfire Ground, St Lawrence

Kentend their LV= County Championship Division Two campaign by welcomingLancashire, the already-crowned champions, to The Spitfire Ground, St Lawrence as the 2013 campaign draws to a close on home turf.

Team news:

Kent have named a 12-man team for the match with new signing Matt Hunn coming in to replace Charlie Shreck.

Hunn, a 19 year-oldfast bowler from Ipswich, has impressed for the secondteam this summer – click here to read the Club announcement on this signing.

The team is: James Tredwell (c), Rob Key, Sam Northeast, Daniel Bell-Drummond, Brendan Nash, Darren Stevens, Ben Harmison, Sam Billings (w), Adam Ball, Mark Davies,Adam Riley, Matt Hunn.

Players to watch:

After missing out on a winter Ashes trip with England, Kent captain James Tredwell will be looking to finish the season on a high. With regular call-ups to thenational squad, Kent’s premier spin bowler has had a truncated season and has only taken 13 Championship wickets. However, the skipper remains a class act and will be looking to claim the two victims he needsto reach 350first-class career scalps.

The visitors have been full of star performers this season, but none more so than seam bowler Kyle Hogg. The 30 year-old has finally managed to stay fitand hasrealised his undoubted talents by taking 60 division two victims, at an impressive average of 18.42. Veteran Glen Chapple and England spinner Simon Kerrigan have also both passed the fifty wicket mark butit's Hogg who has led the bowling attack.

Season so far:

The home side have paid the price for a sluggish start to the season and will be playing their four-day cricket in the second tier again next summer. Tredwell’s men have recorded wins over Glamorgan and Gloucestershire so far, and have only lost two matches but 11 draws ensures they are likely to finish seventh in division two. Rain and a flat track at Wantage Road last week meant their clash with Northamptonshire petered out to a drab stalemate. Kent batted first and centuries from Rob Key and Brendan Nash led them up to 418, with the duo posting 134 for the third wicket. Northants responded with a strong batting performance of their own as James Middlebrook and David Sales moved to three figures, and once Stephen Peters declared, on 431 for five, he and Tredwell shook hands on an inevitabledraw.

Lancashire,by comparison, have taken division two by storm and have won promotion back to division one at the first time of asking. Chapple’s men, powered by a strong batting line-up which includes Simon Katich and Ashwell Prince, have remained unbeaten throughout the campaign, with one to play, claiming eight wins in the process. The Red Rose county secured the title last week when they drew with Gloucestershire at Bristol. The highlight of that clash was a maiden century for all-rounder Luke Procter as Lancashire claimed the division two silverware.

Previous meetings:

When the two sides met at Old Trafford, earlier in the season, inclement weather and solid second innings batting secured a draw for Kent. The visitors took first use of the wicket and despite half-centuries from Nash and Mike Powell, England quick Jimmy Anderson took 4-57, on a rare appearance for the county, to restrict the batting side to 244. Katich (93) and Karl Brown (87) then powered Lancashire’s response as they claimed a fist-innings lead of 151. Matt Coles returned 3-84 for the visitors, who then averted any danger as Nash smashed 100 from 141-balls to see Kent up to 178 for two in their second innings as a draw was called on the final afternoon.

Kent last hosted the Old Trafford outfit for a four-day clash at Canterbury in 2010 when the visitors claimed victory in a division one fixture. Three wickets for Darren Stevens helped restrict Chapple’s side to 266 before Joe Denly struck 69 as Kent surrendered a slender 17-run first innings deficit. West Indian Shiv Chanderpaul then stole the show, scoring 120, as Kent were set a victory target of 338. The totalproved out of reach, despite a belligerent 51 from Coles, as Gary Keedy (4-53) sealed a 121-run win for Lancashire.

In total there have been 222 matches played between the two counties with 55 wins for Kent and 89 victories for Lancashire.

29 matches have been played between the two counties at Canterbury with 11 Kent wins and eight successes for Lancashire.