Durham v Kent (County Championship) : Day Two

ON a seriously blustery day at Riverside, Durham's hopes of building on the first day's merry-making were almost blown away by two solid citizens of Kent.

Robert Key and Matthew Walker are not the leanest performers in county cricket and their weight of runs yesterday carried the visitors to 361 for six, only 46 behind.

Skipper Key led the risk-free progress with 169 and was content for his side to score at three and a half an over, whereas Durham had squandered wickets while motoring along at almost five.

By being dismissed inside a day they left Key enough time to build a match-winning lead, which he was clearly intent on doing until he was adjudged lbw when trying to turn Graham Onions to mid-wicket.

That was the only wicket for Onions, but there also one each for Steve Harmison and Liam Plunkett with the new ball, lifting Durham's spirits after Key put on 173 for the third wicket with Walker.

Hampered by the wind and possibly the flattest pitch in Riverside history, three of the best quick bowlers in the country had struggled to make an impression.

After picking up 15 victims in the first two championship games, Harmison was unable to settle into a testing line, earning his only wicket of the first two sessions from a leg-side ball which was gloved to wicketkeeper Phil Mustard by opener Joe Denly.

In more pleasant evening conditions Harmison bowled his former England team-mate Geraint Jones for one, but such is Jones' form it was hardly a matter for turning cartwheels.

Onions tended to bowl too short and Plunkett was comfortably the pick of the trio, deservedly picking up three wickets.

Key, 28 tomorrow, was in the first National Academy intake with Harmison and when the squad for the first Test against the West Indies is announced this weekend he might wonder how he has drifted so far from consideration.

When the West Indies last visited in 2004 Key scored 221 against them at Lord's, but a general lack of athleticism did not endear him to Duncan Fletcher, and as Paul Collingwood was among those who leapfrogged him in the pecking order his county form also suffered.

He averaged only 31.78 in the championship last season, compared with Walker's 61.69, and came into this match with 11 runs in three innings this season.

Key was seriously critical of the Stockton pitch when Kent won there last year and his innings yesterday bore the hallmarks of a flat track accumulator.

Durham persisted in feeding his sweetly-timed clips to leg, but Kent fans would also have recognised something of the elegance of Colin Cowdrey in his cover driving.

He pulled and cut successive balls from Onions to reach 50 off 87 balls and required a further 90 to complete his century.

Key may also feel he has something to prove to Collingwood as he treated the current England star's medium pace with a respect which underlined his determination not to get out.

Collingwood's ten overs prior to Key's dismissal had cost a mere 13 runs, while Gareth Breese was again wicketless in conceding 55 off 14 overs.

With pitches lacking early season juice, Durham had to work just as hard for their wickets as on the second day at Headingley, when they took only five and subsided the following day.

The opposition have shown the value of a good spinner in dry conditions with Gareth Batty taking seven wickets in the match at Worcester and Adil Rashid grabbing five in Durham's first innings at Headingley.

Even in this match the modest off-spin of James Tredwell claimed four for 88 on Wednesday, but Gareth Breese has yet to take a championship wicket this season.

The fact that Durham were prepared to come into this match with Breese batting as low as eight does not say much for their faith in Paul Wiseman, the former New Zealand Test off-spinner they signed at the end of last season.

There were odd occasions when the ball suddenly went past the bat. Returning for the 54th over, Onions beat Walker twice with his score on 48 then had a good shout for lbw against Key on 86.

Similarly in the 69th over Plunkett beat Key on 118 and Walker on 72, then in his next over he moved one away from the chunky left-hander, who shaped to turn it to leg, changed his mind and edged to Mustard.

Plunkett also bowled Darren Stevens round his legs, but it is Kent's depth of batting which has kept them in division one and when international duo Andrew Hall and Yasir Arafat resume an unbroken stand of 43 they will hope to build a good lead for Kent.

SCORECARD

Durham v Kent at Riverside.

Overnight: Durham 407 (M J Di Venuto 204 no,
K J Coetzer 74; J CTredwell 4-88, R McLaren 4-
91). Kent 23-0.

Kent First Innings Close
J L Denly c Mustard b S J Harmison 17
R W Key lbw b Onions 169
M van Jaarsveld lbw b Plunkett 10
M J Walker c Mustard b Plunkett 72
D I Stevens b Plunkett 10
G O Jones b S J Harmison 1
A J Hall not out 37
Yasir Arafat not out 17
Extras (b7 lb17 nb4 pens 0) 28
Total 6 wkts (101 overs) 361
Fall: 1-45 2-74 3-247 4-282 5-283 6-318
To Bat: R McLaren, J C Tredwell, R H Joseph.
Bonus Pts: Durham 5 Kent 3
Bowling: Onions 23-1-92-1. S J Harmison 18-2-
59-2. Plunkett 26-4-82-3. Collingwood 14-3-27-
0. Breese 14-0-55-0. Benkenstein 6-1-22-0.