Bats seemed to be a couple of inches too narrow for much of a damp, overcast afternoon, so it was little surprise that bowlers held sway during a tight denouement. Tim Murtagh and Vernon Philander kept clear heads and good control, claiming wickets at crucial moments as Middlesex added to their win against Surrey seven days earlier.

With 38 needed from the last 33 balls and six wickets in hand, Kent could feel that a first Friends Provident victory of the season stood only a few clean hits and sharp singles away. Instead, a yorker from Philander which beat Darren Stevens proved to be the beginning of the end for an innings that stalled badly.

Panic was evident in the mix-up which left Azhar Mahmood run out by Philander in his follow through and a full, straight ball by Murtagh undid James Tredwell. Kent needed 12 from the last over thanks to smart batting by Ryan McLaren, who had been brilliant in the field earlier. Time ran out, however, as Murtagh took three more wickets.

A brief shower between innings in an already shortened game had arrived at the perfect time for Middlesex as it freshed the pitch for their new ball bowlers. Steve Finn proved a handful but Martin van Jaarsveld hit a 67-ball fifty, only to misjudge the length of a ball from Shaun Udal.

Middlesex, without Ed Smith because of a gastric complaint, had made a solid start before rain intervened for the first time. Billy Godleman remained unflustered when the ball passed the edge and enjoyed a productive stand with Andrew Strauss, who produced some of the best-timed strokes from either side.

Eoin Morgan kept things ticking when Strauss mistimed a pull against McLaren, but any hopes of a late flourish to the innings were undone by typically clever bowling from the Pakistan pair of Mahmood and Yasir Arafat, whose slower ball ball which Philander chipped to midwicket was a perfect example of its type.

One-day cricket may be changing in the face of the star-studded Indian Premier League and imbalance between bat and ball that is a pre-requisite of Twenty20 entertainment. But this relatively low-scoring encounter held a small crowd captivated and most stayed until the final exchanges no matter the cold.

Scoreboard

Middlesex

*E C Joyce c Key b Arafat 15

B A Godleman run out 43

A J Strauss c sub b McLaren 33

O A Shah run out 2

E J G Morgan c McLaren b Stevens 29

V D Philander c Stevens b Arafat 12

T J Murtagh c Arafat b Azhar 6

†B J M Scott c Jones b Azhar 3

G K Berg not out 2

Extras (b 5, lb 11, w 16) 32

Total (8 wkts, 36.5 overs) 177

S D Udal and S T Finn did not bat.

Fall of wickets: 1-45, 2-104, 3-106, 4-130, 5-161, 6-170, 7-174, 8-177.

Bowling: Azhar 6.5-0-29-2; Arafat 7-1-26-2; McLaren 8-0-37-1; Cook 8-0-39-0; Stevens 7-0-30-1.

Kent

J L Denly c Godleman b Philander 17

*R W T Key b Finn 1

M van Jaarsveld b Udal 53

M J Walker c Strauss b Berg 4

D I Stevens b Philander 25

Azhar Mahmood run out 21

J C Tredwell b Murtagh 4

†G O Jones b Murtagh 4

R McLaren not out 14

Yasir Arafat c Morgan b Murtagh 4

S J Cook c Morgan b Murtagh 0

Extras (lb 11, w 4, nb 4) 19

Total (33 overs) 166

Fall of wickets: 1-3, 2-42, 3-68, 4-98, 5-135, 6-142, 7-142, 8-161, 9-165.

Bowling: Murtagh 7-0-29-4; Finn 7-0-25-1; Philander 7-0-31-2; Berg 6-0-40-1; Udal 6-0-30-1.

Umpires: S A Garratt and N J Llong.

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