Chris Benjamin hit 70 as Kent reached 356 for 7 at stumps on day one of their Rothesay County Championship with Middlesex at Canterbury.

Ben Compton and Ben Dawkins also hit half-centuries, making 53 and 50 respectively, as Kent benefited from a series of partnerships.

The hosts didn’t have things all their own way however, and were kept in check by Seb Morgan, who took 4 for 90, and Tom Helm, who claimed 3 for 63.

The 174th Canterbury Festival got underway in front of a crowd of 2628, swelled by over a thousand schoolchildren. They witnessed an opening session for the purists, with Kent choosing to bat and inching to 64 without loss at lunch.

There was plenty of movement, and while little of it troubled the batters, it took 39 minutes before the first boundary, from Dawkins.

Dawkins had nudged his way to 50 soon after the resumption, edging Morgan for four, when he went to the same bowler, caught by Max Holden off a leading edge.

Helm subsequently got both Compton and Daniel Bell-Drummond caught behind, the latter for 5 after an athletic grab by Joe Cracknell. He then bowled Sam Northeast for 42 with one that cut back and bent his off stump backwards, putting Middlesex in a far happier mood at tea, when it was 202 for 4.

Kent responded with another half-century stand, but this was broken when Morgan had Ekansh Singh caught behind for 17.

Benjamin cut Zafar through backward point to reach his 50 and Grant Stewart survived a dicey opening spell to dump Naavya Sarma for six over midwicket.

Their partnership, worth 64, was broken when Morgan had Benjamin caught behind and Stewart was two shy of his half-century when Morgan bowled him off stump, but Keith Dudgeon and Matt Milnes added some useful runs, steering Kent to a third batting point shortly before stumps.