Brown's blitz leaves champions winless

ROUND-UP

Alistair Brown continued his fine start to the season and reinforced his prospects of an England call-up next week for the Texaco Trophy with a typically forthright knock in Surrey's crushing defeat of Kent at The Oval.

He made 84 off just 50 balls to help Surrey reach 307 for 5 while Kent subsided to 157 all out. It was the reigning Sunday League champions' second loss out of two games.

Brown and David Ward, whose 112, with five sixes and seven fours, was his best on a Sunday smashed Kent's attack for 127 runs inside 18 overs.

Brown's first two scoring shots, off the second and third balls he faced went for six off the Julian Thompson. The last of his four sixes, again off Thompson travelled 110 yards, just failing to clear the 90-foot high pavilion. If it had cleared the building it would have earned him pounds 50,000 courtesy of Foster's, the county's sponsors.

Stuart Law's first Sunday century guided Essex to a 10-wicket win over Hampshire. The Queensland captain hit an unbeaten 108 off 90 balls as Essex reached their target of 188 with more than seven overs to spare.

Against his former county, Hampshire's new captain, John Stephenson, batted throughout the innings, hitting one six and 11 fours in his 110.

Ottis Gibson's big hitting proved in vain as Northamptonshire edged past Glamorgan by four wickets with two deliveries to spare. The West Indian all-rounder thrashed four sixes in an unbeaten 47 from 32 balls to boost his side to 199 for 6.

Mal Loye (58) and Tony Penberthy (30no) guided Northamptonshire to their fifth one-day wins out of five this season.