MATCH REPORT: Jennings hits century but Kent win a thriller at Blackpool
Keaton Jennings made an unbeaten century as Lancashire lost a thrilling Metro Bank One Day Cup match by five runs at Blackpool.
Jennings batted through the innings to finish unbeaten on 107 from 140 balls but ran out of partners with former Red Rose leg spinner Matt Parkinson taking four for 30 including the last Lancashire wicket with the second ball of the final over.
It was agony for Jennings who had been superb in holding the innings together as Lancashire closed in on their 210 run target.
But the Kent attack worked their way steadily through the innings, led by Beyers Swanepoel who bowled superbly in taking three for 26 from nine overs.
It was Swanepoel who struck with early wickets having both George Bell and Josh Bohannon caught for 6 and 5 respectively, Bell at slip and Bohannon brilliantly held by a leaping Joey Evison at cover.
That left Lancashire on 24 for two in the eighth over but Jennings and Balderson rebuilt with a 42-run partnership before Kent’s Australian all-rounder Charlie Stobo (two for 30) struck twice in the 19th over removing Balderson, caught at cover for 27 and George Lavelle caught behind second ball.
Rocky Flintoff, who became Lancashire’s youngest-ever player when making his debut today, batted steadily in partnership with Jennings across the following eleven overs with 31 runs chipped off the target before the 16-year-old was neatly stumped by Harry Finch after pushing forward but overbalancing slightly to Parkinson having made 12 off 28 balls.
Leg spinner Parkinson struck again having Chris Green lbw for 5 to leave Lancashire 120 for six in the 35th over with a lot resting on skipper Jennings who had been rock-like thus far in reaching his fifty from 91 balls (with 7 fours).
Jack Blatherwick hit a brace of sixes off Jack Leaning that meant a very gettable 47 runs were required from the final 10 overs but Lancashire started running out of wickets.
Blatherwick skied a return catch to Swanepoel after hitting 25 from 24 balls, and Parkinson snared Will Williams caught behind for 4 leaving 22 needed from 26 balls
Jennings, who had thumped Jaydn Denly for six earlier, drove on reaching his century from 136 balls (12 fours, 1 six) and striking two boundaries off Swanepoel in the penultimate over to bring the equation down to six needed off 7 balls.
In a frantic finish Charlie Barnard was run out for one from the last ball of the 49th over trying to get Jennings on strike for the final over, and the injured Ollie Sutton was bowled second ball to leave the delighted Kent players mobbing Parkinson.
It was a thrilling finale to a game that had taken time to come to life after a stop-start beginning to the Kent innings with none of their top order making a telling contribution in the face of some good bowling from the Lancashire attack.
Finch, with 48 from 63 balls during the second half of the visitors 50 overs was chiefly responsible for the visitors posting 209 after they had lost all of their top order by the 32nd over with 136 runs scored.
Three wickets fell in the first 16 overs, started when opener Swanepoel, having hit the first six of the day in the fourth over off Balderson, departed in the next when the South African chipped Williams to Lavelle at mid-wicket for 19.
But Balderson, with an excellent seven over spell that cost only 24 runs despite that six, and Williams applied the brakes and Kent then suffered a double blow with the loss of two wickets in quick succession.
Evison, having batted steadily, was run out for 22 by a smart piece of fielding by Blatherwick at mid-on and Ekansh Singh top edged Sutton to Lavelle at point for 15 to leave the visitors on 61 for three.
But Sutton’s debut was cruelly cut short just three balls into his opening over when the left arm quick was injured while bowling, grabbing his side after pulling up and replaced in the attack by Bohannon, who produced five overs and three balls of effective off breaks that only conceded 25 runs.
Leaning and Denly rebuilt with a 54-run partnership before both fell to catches by Green off Barnard (two for 47), Denly beaten in the flight and taken at mid-on after making an attractive 32 while Leaning drove loosely to long-off for 24.
When Stobo, surprised by a quicker, bouncy delivery gave a return catch to Green for 5, Kent were struggling on 147 for six in the 35th over.
Finch did his best to marshal the remainder of the innings hitting seven fours and mixing aggression with clever placement and his contribution proved to be invaluable as Kent crept over the two hundred mark.
Finch eventually became one of three wickets for Green when holing out in the penultimate over followed two balls later by Gilchrist to end the innings in the 49th over.
But Kent’s 209 proved to be sufficient – just!
“I’m gutted to have lost,” said Head Coach Dale Benkenstein.
“It was a great game but I thought we prolonged it a little bit. I thought we could have been more positive in the middle period.
“They had a good bowling attack so even though we kept them down to a good total there was a period where I felt we could have kept them down to less given the strength of our bowling, plus the wicket didn’t look great.
“I was disappointed as well for Keats who batted through.
“Even though you only have a small total to chase you still have to play at your own tempo. You still want to be positive, looking to score and that intent can help get you bad balls. If you end up waiting for a bad ball you tend to get out.
“So there’s a bit of a learning there for us, but it would have been better to learn having got over the line.”
And Benkenstein is pleased with the young players who have made their debuts in the two games played in this competition.
“I feel this is an opportunity for us to have a look at some of our players,” he said.
“That’s why I wanted to play Sutton and Flintoff today.
“So as much as you lose, I feel that I’m gaining a heck of a lot of giving players opportunities.
“In the next six games I’m sure we are going to get on the right side of it, learning a lot as we go along.
“If you do get on a roll, which we have to do soon, you can get some good momentum going into the knockout stages.
“That is the aim and I do believe we’ve got the team to do it.”
Ken Grime
Photos: Barry Mitchell & Dan Adams