Date-stamped : 20 May96 - 10:15 AXA Equity & Law Sunday League 1996 Essex v Kent Valentine's Park, Ilford 19 May 1996 ====> REPORT Fleming is the master with both bat and ball By Paul Newman at Ilford Kent (272-6) bt Essex (267-9) by five runs KENT, the defending Sunday champions soundly beaten in their first two matches this season, inally got off the mark yesterday. However, they suffered severe palpitations along the way during an extraordinary encounter at Ilford. Kent looked in a formidable position after they had thumped their way to 272 for six, 10 sixes disappearing to various parts of Valentine`s Park, five of them being bludgeoned by Matthew Valen- tine Fleming during his maiden Sunday century. Yet that was only the beginning of the story. Such was the positive intent with which Essex replied that for much of the time they looked capable of reaching their stiffest winning target in the league. Ronnie Irani, selected for the England party to face India in the one-day series this week, came close to overshadowing Fleming by hitting 80 off 63 balls with three huge sixes of his own. Indeed, Essex reached the penultimate over with 24 needed and Irani at the crease with Paul Prichard. Then it all went wrong. Steve Marsh, the acting Kent captain, had gambled - or miscalcu- lated - in bowling out his key men, leaving debutant Nick Preston with the awesome task of coming on for the first time with only two overs remaining. He will not forget his Sunday over in a hur- ry. Irani was run out off the first ball, then Robert Rollins hit his first delivery out of the ground and struck his next for three. Prichard followed that with a cut four and was then run out at- tempting a second run. A single by Paul Grayson completed Preston`s `spell` and he returned to the outfield with figures of 1-0-15-0 and two run-outs. The last six balls were entrusted to Fleming, who had earlier followed his century by dismissing Nasser Hussain and Graham Gooch. Grayson and Ashley Cowan - without facing - became further run- out victims and Mark Ilott was caught in the deep trying to re- peat Rollins`s feat of striking his first ball for six. Fleming`s accuracy then proved too much for Rollins and Peter Such. In the excitement it was easy to forget Fleming`s 112 from 91 balls and another sublime contribution from Carl Hooper. The West Indian hit 73 off 57 balls, one of his three sixes forcing the Essex administrative staff to scurry when it came crashing into their Portakabin. It came off Stuart Law whose two for 81 were the most expensive by an Essex player in the league. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk) Contributed by William.Turrell (william@*.chaucer.ac.uk)