A quick-fire 110-run partnership for the sixth wicket between Jonathan Batty and Azhar Mahmood swung this oscillating contest in Surrey's favour. Thanks to an amazing turnaround, engineered by Kent's Rob Key and James Tredwell, who combined for the second highest eighth wicket stand in one-day cricket, the honours could so easily have gone to the Spitfires. With Key hitting 108 at exactly a run a ball and Tredwell contributing in both departments, the visitors appeared to be on course for a comfortable debut win in the 50-over Friends Provident Trophy, when, in the gloom, Mahmood joined Batty at the crease.

With Mahmood clubbing 63 in 43 deliveries and Batty, who made an unbeaten 52 off 47, playing a measured support role, the Brown Caps responded dynamically to the challenge of making 125 off the last eighteen overs. When the Pakistan all-rounder was caught behind off Yasir Arafat the requirement had been shaved to fifteen off four.

Earlier in the day a very different outcome had been anticipated. After winning the toss and electing to bat, Key saw his Kent side sink to 52-7 in the fourteenth over before finding a willing ally in the much-underrated Tredwell. The early damage was done by Akram and Mahmood, abetted by Batty behind the stumps.

Darren Stevens departed to the eighth ball of proceedings. In the very next over, the former England wicketkeeper, Geraint Jones was caught at second slip without scoring. The fifth over saw the departure of Martin van Jaarsveld and Matt Walker, who swished impatiently at a wide ball from Mohammad Akram.

Mahmood then surprised Joe Denly with some tennis ball bounce and had Arafat been held at second slip the visitors would have been 21-6. As it was, the next wicket was not long in coming. Kent's Pakistan all-rounder was caught behind in Steve Magoffin's first over. After hitting the Australian for a straight six off a free-hit, Ryan McLaren drilled Magoffin to backward point.

For the next 26 overs, however, Key and Tredwell saw off Akram - who bowled straight through to claim figures of 3-21 - before cutting lose against the spinners. The first of Tredwell's three sixes came in the 21st over when he despatched Nayan Doshi over long-off.

Fifty-nine runs in seven overs took the total to 177-7. Two overs later, Tredwell moved to his fifty in 66 deliveries, before the Kent skipper brought up the second one-day hundred of his career off 100 balls; the half-century having taken him 56.

Tredwell clubbed Doshi for two sixes in the 39th over, but the 40th saw Key bamboozled by a googly from Chris Schofield. The stand of 174 was second only Shahid Iqbal and Haaris Ayaz's 203 for Karachi Whites against Hyderabad in 1998/99 in terms of eighth wicket partnerships in limited-overs cricket.

A stand of 39 in five overs between Tredwell and Simon Cook put the visitors in an even stronger position, but the reintroduction of Magoffin enabled the hosts to wrap things up before the Spitfires could use their full allocation of overs. Tredwell, who departed to a catch at long-on in the 45th over, finished with a career best 88.

In reply, the Surrey openers got their side off to a good start, racing to 44 after seven overs. Scott Newman took three boundaries off Ryan McLaren's second over. With two boundaries coming in the South African's third, Key threw the ball to Arafat, who made the first breakthrough.

James Benning was succeeded by Mark Ramprakash, who disappointed his band of female admirers by making just five before he was caught at third man off the bowling of Cook. The Brown Caps then became bogged down. Mark Butcher, in partnership with Newman, helped add 77 for the third wicket, but the alliance took up nineteen overs.

When Butcher, Brown and Newman perished in quick succession it looked as though Kent would canter home. However, Batty and the incomparable Mahmood showed they had other ideas.

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