Joe Denly ton gives Middlesex hope after appeal loss

Joe Denly hit a century to rescue Kent in their Friends Provident Trophy clash against Warwickshire at Edgbaston today — and that was good news for Middlesex.

The visitors slumped to 113 for five in the
Group B encounter after losing Rob Key (20), Martin van Jaarsveld (one) and Geraint Jones (one) but recovered to make 265 off 49.2 overs.

Opener Denly, 23, was instrumental in leading the fightback by smashing nine fours and three sixes in his innings of 115, before he was caught off seamer Steffan Piolet.

Middlesex, who are second in the group, need Kent to win to have any hope of reaching the quarter-finals after they lost a bid to replay their match against Somerset.

An umpiring error helped Somerset win Sunday's game at Lord's on the Duckworth/Lewis method as they were given more powerplay overs than they were entitled to.

The England and Wales Cricket Board yesterday acknowledged the miscalculation by the officials, but though they had sympathy for Middlesex, decided to uphold the precedent that umpire errors cannot form the basis to declare a match null and void.