Three years ago Geraint Jones was a member of the England team that regained the Ashes at the Oval. Much water has passed under the bridge since then. Jones, for one, has been out of the international reckoning for some time. But on the same day as the full itinerary of Australia's tour of England next summer was announced, Jones reminded everyone of the grit and determination that struck such a chord with Duncan Fletcher by helping to pull round a floundering Kent performance. For good measure he also picked up two catches behind the stumps two account for two of Surrey's top order as the Brown Caps crashed, embarrassingly, to 84-6 on their way to being dismissed for 192.

Having reduced Kent to 52-4 in the sixteenth over, Surrey, led on this occasion by Mark Ramprakash, let their opponents off the hook for the second time in as many days.

First to go was Rob Key, leg before not playing much of a shot. Four overs later Pedro Collins added the scalp of Joe Denly to his tally, when the 22-year-old reached forward to a ball that hurried on to him. In the fourteenth over, Matt Nicholson replaced Jade Dernbach - whose opening spell read 6-1-15-0 - and after being despatched through extra cover for four first ball by Martin van Jaarsveld, accounted for the dangerous South African.

When Darren Stevens went for a duck, leg before to a full-length delivery, the visitors faced an uphill task. But, on a pitch that appeared to be full of runs, they regrouped. Thanks to Justin Kemp and Jones, who put on 92 in twenty overs for the fifth wicket, a foundation was laid which the Spitfires' wicketkeeper, Azhar Mahmood and finally Ryan McLaren made full use of as 84 runs came off the last six overs.

Jones and Mahmood added 93 in just eleven overs to set a new Kent record for the sixth wicket against Surrey in one-day cricket, beating Alan Knott and Bob Woolmer's 75 at The Oval in 1972. Curiously, the pick of Surrey's attack, Nicholson, was given just seven overs while Neil Saker, who was in the side for the injured Chris Jordan, was the first to complete his full allocation, which cost 53 runs.

But the main casualty of Kent's late surge was Chris Schofield, whom Jones lifted for two sixes in the 46th over. In the next over, Jones departed for a career best 86 off 88 balls. One of the reasons was Nicholson's second spell was so brief, however, was because Azhar seemed to be middling everything. The former Surrey man posted a 38-ball half-century, which he celebrated with a huge six over long-off off Collins in the penultimate over. He perished attempting to repeat the stroke, but by that time the damage had been done.

Surrey's dented pride spilled over into their reply. Scott Newman started well enough, despatching Yasir Arafat through cover with authority in the opening over, but two overs later the left-hander nibbled at one that lifted and left him. With James Benning falling leg before in the seventh over and Ramprakash being bowled off an inside edge in the eighth, any hope the Brown Caps had of turning the things round rested on Usman Afzaal and Alistair Brown. So, when the latter was caught in front of first slip off Yasir in the eleventh over and the former Notts and Northants left-hander was caught low down at second slip four overs later, the outcome was a formality.

But, undeterred, Jonathan Batty used the opportunity to show that it was possible to construct an innings by making 63 on what proved to be a good day for the stumpers.

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