COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION ONE, Canterbury:
CLOSE OF PLAY, DAY TWO: Lancashire 266 & 103-3, Kent 249
Lancs 5pts, Kent 4pts
Match scorecard

Keedy registered a career-best 7-68 against Durham earlier this month

Lancashire spinner Gary Keedy took 4-49 to help bowl his side back into the game against Kent at Canterbury.

Skipper Glen Chapple (4-45) also weighed in with a couple of wickets as Kent, 53-2 overnight, were bowled out for 249, 17 behind on first innings.

Kent opener Joe Denly hit 69, supported by Martin Van Jaarsveld (34).

Lancashire then extended their lead as they reached 105-3 by the close, with Steven Croft still there on 38, Darren Stevens taking two more wickets.

Stevens, who took three Red Rose wickets for no runs in the first innings, snared both openers Tom Smith and Paul Horton (29) leg before wicket.

But Lancashire were then rescued by an unbroken fourth-wicket stand of 51 between Croft and Shivnarine Chanderpaul (23 not out), fresh from a first innings golden duck.

That helped Lancashire limp to an overall lead of 120 runs, with seven second innings wickets left, after another day of cut and thrust at the St Lawrence Ground.

Kent coach Paul Farbrace told BBC Radio Kent:
"It's been finely balanced for six sessions and with six more to go it could go either way. I don't think if I was a betting man I'd be putting money on a draw at this stage, unless weather intervenes so it's a good game of cricket really.

"There's been some exciting cricket, there's also been patches where the ball's got on top and there's been some patches where the bat's been well and truly on top so it's been an interesting two days so far.

"We said if we could get them 80-4 tonight that would probably be about right - perhaps they got 20 more than we would have liked and we would have liked one more wicket but that's the way the game goes."

Lancashire skipper Glen Chapple said:

"It's still in the balance. It's a close-fought game on a pitch that should produce a result.

"If you can see off the new ball, it's a pitch you can get runs on. Steven Croft's playing well and he and Shivnarine Chanderpaul put on some crucial runs for us in the final session.

"We bowled well and stuck at it, but dropped a few catches which maybe cost us a bigger first innings lead."

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