Ben Kellaway’s 181* helped Glamorgan to an innings and 161 run victory over Kent, their first in the County Championship this season.

Kellaway’s mammoth innings propelled his side to 549-9 declared, before the Glamorgan seamers ran through the Kent batting line-up twice on days two and three to wrap up a 23-point victory.

Put into bat away in Canterbury, Glamorgan started well, led by university student Asa Tribe’s sparky 94. However, when Tribe was castled by Callum Parkinson, with the Welsh county on 193-4, the innings had the potential to peter out into an average score.

Colin Ingram, so often Glamorgan’s batting rock, was joined at the crease by Kellaway, and put on 133 for the fifth wicket before the South African overseas departed for 70.

Kellaway, who is rapidly emerging as Glamorgan’s player of the season so far, kept batting on, forming key partnerships with Chris Cooke, Timm van der Gugten, and Andy Gorvin. When captain Sam Northeast called Kellaway and Asitha Fernando in on 549-9, the team had a perfect chance to post a first win of the season.

Kent’s batting mirrored Glamorgan’s. Within 15 overs, the returning James Harris and van der Gugten had reduced the talented Kent top order to 23-5. Even with Chris Benjamin’s defiant 94*, the home side were bundled out for 212, leaving them 347 short.

Northeast consulted his bowlers and asked Kent to follow on. Again, Glamorgan were rampant. Sri Lankan overseas Fernando took out the top order, and van der Gugten the middle.

There was even enough time for Kellaway to cement his player of the match credentials by taking the final two wickets with his unique brand of right-arm and left-arm spin.

This result has lifted Glamorgan up from bottom of Division Two of the County Championship, and above Gloucestershire and Lancashire into sixth.

Last week, the club confirmed that Australian international Marnus Labuschagne would be returning to Sophia Gardens for a seventh summer. With the World Test Championship Final coming in early June, the 57-test cap batter is available for the next two matches against Middlesex and Northamptonshire.

The club are now only 22 points behind Derbyshire in second and Glamorgan are finally looking up to those above them with intent.

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