Leaping into the dark

SO MANY VARIABLES, SAYS WALKER AS KENT PREPARE FOR THEIR FIRST-EVER DAY-NIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH FIXTURES

Head coach Matt Walker admits Kent are venturing into the unknown next week.

The County Championship will feature its first round of day-night matches in preparation for England’s first-ever daynight Test at home against West Indies in August.

Kent head to Division 2 leaders Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge from Monday, with the game starting at 2pm each day and due to finish around 9.30pm.

The conditions are likely to play a big part, with the combination of the pink Dukes ball and the descent of twilight expected to provide bowlers with considerable opportunity to swing the ball.

Notts are boosted by the availability of England duo Stuart Broad and Jake Ball, while Sam Billings is back for Kent.

Leg-spinner Yasir Shah was selected for the opening two games of his four-match stint with Kent, against Durham and at Worcestershire this week and Walker said he was likely to keep his place as New Zealand paceman Adam Milne rests an ankle niggle after the Champions Trophy.

Walker said: “It’s new. Most players havn’t played in a game like this before and I certainly haven’t been involved in one. We can’t second guess how the game is going to play out because nobody really knows.

“It’s a new initiative from the ECB and we just have to get on with it. It’s the same for everone.

“How the pink ball will affect things, how the weather, the conditions at different times – we just don’t know. It will probably have to be a case of suck it and see and then it’s down to who adapts to the job the best.”

Walker said Kent planned to hold an evening practice session at the Spitfire Ground on Saturday evening, after the the England Lions versus South Africa A game. He said: “It’s our only real GAMES KENT’S NEXT FIVE (Beckenham)..cc2 July 3 Northants T20 Beckenham) .......... July 9 Essex ( Division 2, County Championship Key: CC2 = Specsavers Blast, F = floodlit T20 = Natwest T20 opportunity to do it as we have such a short turnaround between the game at Worcester. We’ll practise with the pink ball and get a bit of a feel for it.”

Despite the Notts game looking like potentially the biggest of the season for his side, Walker claimed he didn’t mind it will be decided in unfamiliar conditions.

He said: “It doesn’t really matter who the opposition is. We don’t look too much into it. The different ball and conditions isn’t much of an issue – it’s the same for both teams. It’s just another game, albeit a tough one. Notts are having a great season and are looking strong. It would be tough with a pink ball or a red one, at any time of day.

“It might be that the changes might affect them more than us, it might even help us, the ball might swing about, it might not.”

Depending on results this week, both sides could be anywhere from top to fourth come the end of the game at Trent Bridge.

Walker said: “Notts were strong favourites for promotion from the start of the season but we are not far behind.

“It’s a big game in the eyes of a lot of people but we have to stay calm and keep doing what we’ve been doing.”

Around 50 juniors from four different clubs – Minster, Sheppey, Upchurch and hosts Faversham – attended the Swale Cricket Association Under-9 festival on Friday

Adam Riley may not have been named in the England Lions squad for this week’s game against South Africa A but he made the most of their arrival in Canterbury. He was one of a number of Kent players asked to bowl in the nets to give players, including...