Kent faces uphill battle against Northants as Crawley's struggles persist

Kent's Zak Crawley continued to struggle with his third consecutive sub-30 score in the County Championship, while Northamptonshire achieved a record 684 for two declared at Canterbury. The visitors' top four batsmen all reached centuries, a first for the team, with Luke Procter scoring a maiden double ton of 261. Crawley's position in the England team is under scrutiny after a disappointing Ashes series and an average of just over 31 in 64 matches. He showed some patience to reach 26 but was dismissed after missing a drive, as Kent closed on 119 for six. Elsewhere, Ben Duckett was run out for one, while Joe Clarke's 136 helped Nottinghamshire take a commanding lead over Glamorgan. Ben McKinney boosted his prospects of displacing Crawley or Duckett with a 244 for Durham against Gloucestershire. Craig Overton's career-best 141 lifted Somerset to 348 in response to Essex's 149, and Rishi Patel's unbeaten 133 helped Leicestershire fight back against Surrey. Other notable performances included Sonny Baker and Kyle Abbott's four-wicket hauls for Hampshire against Yorkshire, and Rob Yates' unbeaten 75 for Warwickshire against Sussex.