Denly continued his fine early-season form against Hampshire

Joe Denly struck a century and defied Australian pair Stuart Clark (4-48) and Shane Warne (3-42) to give Kent the edge on a day on which 16 wickets fell.

The 21-year-old opener, a product of the Kent youth system, carried his bat with 115 from 189 balls, including 15 fours, and made over half Kent's runs.

James Tredwell (17) was the next highest scorer in a total of 199.

However, Hampshire fared little better as Yasir Arafat (3-44) removed three of their top four to leave them 124-6.

Sean Ervine top-scored for the visitors with just 22 before he was trapped lbw by Simon Cook, who ended the day with 2-20 off 10 overs.

However, a seventh-wicket stand of 39 between Dimitri Mascarenhas (14 not out) and Tom Burrows (21 not out) ensured Hampshire have a chance of overhauling Kent's total on day two.

With considerable movement off the pitch as well as some poor shot selection, there were plenty of low scores - apart from Denly's.

And the youngster's performance was all the more impressive given Clark and Warne's dominance.