Essex succumb to innings defeat against Kent

Kent completed the 'double' over near-neighbours Essex with opening bowler Martin Saggers returning figures to influence another wretched batting display by the bottom-of-the-table side.

The visitors had declared half an hour before lunch having built a first innings lead of 246 runs. Robert Key added another 23 runs to his overnight 100 before Justin Bishop ended his six-hour 45-minute vigil. That was one of four wickets for the 19-year-old bowler who returned figures of 4-120, a personal Championship best.

Mark Ealham, with 44 which is his best CricInfo Championship score of the campaign, helped his side to their fourth batting point and a total of 353-7 before the declaration came.

Although Essex negotiated the five overs before the lunch interval, they floundered in the next session losing eight wickets for 102 runs with only Paul Grayson appearing to relish the challenge.

He eschewed any semblance of risk with an innings of composed restraint while his colleagues' application fell wantonly short of the required application as a number of batsman brought about their demise with self-inflicted wounds.

Spinner Min Patel provided the initial breakthrough, finding the edge of Richard Clinton's bat where 'keeper Paul Nixon took a uniform catch to start the Essex collapse.

Saggers then made his striking intervention on proceedings as Darren Robinson became the first of his five victims, caught at short-leg for two runs. But it was the capture of two wickets in the space of three deliveries for the 29-year-old that tore the heart out of the home side as Stephen Peters was bowled for two and then Ronnie Irani completed a 'pair' after pushing feebly forward to be caught at second slip.

Ben Trott offered chief support for his fellow paceman Saggers, initially accounting for James Foster for eight before he too grabbed two wickets in an over. Ashley Cowan and Bishop both fell in the penultimate over before tea and, with Tim Phillips having already been prised out by Matthew Fleming when he dabbed the Kent skipper to Nixon, Essex were facing another ignominious defeat at 110-8 wickets at tea.

All the while, Grayson offered resolute resistance and seemed likely to become the first Essex opener since John Stephenson in 1991 to carry his bat through an innings but after losing Peter Such, who gave Saggers his fourth wicket, the former Yorkshire player's model approach spanning almost three hours ended when the 136th delivery that he faced clipped off stump. That afforded bowler Saggers his best Championship figures of the season and his side victory by an innings and 132 runs earning them 19 points.

Meanwhile Essex, with just two points, were left to lick the wounds of a fifth Championship defeat on their last six matches and they now look odds-on certainties for a return to Division Two at the end of the summer.