Sam Northeast heads back to the pavilion as the Yorkshire players celebrate Picture: Barry Goodwin

by Graham Jones

Kent were put to the sword by Yorkshire skipper Andrew Gale in their Clydesdale Bank 40 match at the St Lawrence Ground on Sunday afternoon.

Opener Gale produced a match-winning innings of 112 to send Kent to a 93-run defeat in their third match of the campaign.

Although Gale was the difference between the teams, Kent were left to rue a poor bowling performance that gave their batsmen with too much to do.

Kent made one change to their side, with last season’s young player-of-the-year Matt Coles returning from injury to make his first appearance of the summer in place of Adam Riley.

Having won the toss Yorkshire chose to bat, but Adam Ball (pictured below)made the breakthrough for Kent with two early wickets to leave the visitors on 40-2.

Darren Stevens produced a fine catch to spell the end of Jonny Bairstow’s innings, for a rapid 26, and Geriant Jones caught Adam Lyth, who was out without scoring.

Yorkshire rallied with a 50-partnership for the third wicket from Gale and Joe Root.

And Gale reached his half-century as Yorkshire progressed to 116-2 by the halfway point in their innings.

Gale and Root went on to produced a century partnership with Yorkshire on 142-2 off 23 overs, before the third wicket finally fell 22 runs later. Root was the man to go, caught by Azhar Mahmood off James Tredwell for 43.

Gale completed a fine century that included nine fours and two sixes and came off 105 balls and enjoyed another 50-stand, this time with Gerard Brophy before the latter was trapped lbw by Mahmood for 28.

Coles then bowled Tim Bresnan for nine, before an excellent throw by Ball enabled Jones to run out Gale.

Richard Pyrah was forced to retire hurt, after twisting his knee following a delivery by Coles, and Alex Blake caught Ajmal Shahzad off Mahmood in the final over as Yorkshire finished with 254-7.

Kent found themselves in trouble early on when Ryan Sidebottom dismissed Sam Northeast and Martin van Jaarsveld in successive balls in the third over of their innings.

With the score on 13-1, Sidebottom had Northeast caught behind by Gerard Brophy for three. Van Jaarsveld, who had been in such good form during Kent’s opening two games of the competition, was out for a golden duck when he was caught by David Wainwright.

Key followed in the 10th over when he skied the ball to Adil Rashid off the bowling of Bresnan to leave Kent on 46-3.

Blake was then dismissed by Rashid, when he was caught behind by Brophy, and after Stevens was bowled by Rashid for 39 Kent were 101-5 off 21 overs.

Although Tredwell hit 25, the last five Kent wickets then went down in quick succession for only 45 runs to leave the visitors with a comfortable victory.

Kent: Key, Northeast, van Jaarsveld, Stevens, Blake, Jones, Mahmood, Tredwell, Coles, Ball, Shaw.