Skipper delighted with victory over Essex

CAPTAIN Martin van Jaarsveld was a happy man after Kent recorded a fantastic 192 run win over Essex at Chelmsford. After being forced to follow-on, many sides would“ve folded but Kent showed tremendous character and desire to fight themselves right back into the game.

Talking to the official website, van Jaarsveld said: ‘It was a pretty extraordinary game. After bowling us out cheaply in our first-innings they would“ve felt confident of going on to win but the boys showed good spirit. It was just a matter of grinding things out in our second-innings and we showed some great character. Tredy (James Tredwell) did well for us as a makeshift opener. I also felt that both Stevo (Darren Stevens) and Hockers (James Hockley) deserve special mention because they built a good partnership and that helped us go on to a real big score.“

The Kent skipper declared the second-innings on 512 for nine to set Essex a victory target of 348 and he was delighted with the attitude and commitment shown by his bowlers: ‘RJ (Robbie Joseph) and Wayne (Parnell) did really well for us with the new ball. As captain, it is always tough to work out when to declare. I didn“t want to leave them too long but I didn“t want them shutting up the shop either. It was a toss up between time and runs. We thought about 350 in 60 overs would be ideal and it allowed us to put pressure on them for long periods. We got early wickets through RJ and Wayne. They bowled really well in tandem and I was delighted for them both. Robbie took a bit of tap in the first-innings so he came back and showed great courage. Parnell is only a young bloke but he is a special talent – I“m pleased to have him in a Kent shirt.“

Finally, how sweet was it for van Jaarsveld to come out on top against old rivals Essex? ‘I think we owed them one because they have the better record recently. It was a fantastic effort by everyone involved and I think it sends out a message that we are a tough to beat in four-day cricket.“

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