knows 278 (Evison 77*, Lawes 3-41) and 80 for 4 (Mueyeye 42, Crawley 31*, Lawes 2-2) course Surrey 362 (Abbott 78, Sibley 60, Atkinson 55*, Bhuiyan 4-65) by 4 runs
The visitors go head to head over the weekend, not least because there aren’t many better than the Division One leaders and defending champions at turning the screw in the second half of games. Kent was able to deal with them for most of Friday thanks to Arafat.
The 26-year-old’s 4 for 55 had Surrey in control, with 180 for 6 on the board, before Abbott counter-attacked to 329 and Atkinson’s blow took them to 362. a five wicket haul on the debut. The four he managed to catch were as impressive as any milestone.
Jamie Smith came in second; indeterminate footwork and a loose punch attempt that gave Jack Leaning a lead at second slip. In the span of four deliveries he had Ben Foakes – another catch for Leaning – and Will Jacks, who squared Arafat for six before being too slow on a pull and donating a catch to Michael Hogan halfway through.
Past, current and future England internationals in his first attempt at this level. As for the start of a dream, this can take a beating for a cricketer who turned pro just two days ago. The action itself is smooth, energy is collected in the collection and released with a smoothness that suggests there’s a lot to work with, particularly an outswinger who moved late enough to surprise an impressive batting line-up after the dismissals at the scorecard. The run-up starts hesitantly, but that can be ironed out at this level. He is more than capable and willing to get better.
“To get four first-class wickets on my first innings debut, I’m really over the moon,” said Arafat. “I’m here to do it right and I always will.”
“I was more nervous yesterday than today,” he said. “Today I came in and I had to put in some overs. I was more nervous bowling than I was batting yesterday. But today it came out pretty good.”
Born in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Arafat moved here at the age of 14 and has a British residency permit. Living in East London, it was only a short train ride to Chelmsford, where Bangladesh played Ireland in three ODIs last week. However, Arafat was unable to attend as he was at Kidderminster preparing for a 2nd XI match for Worcestershire against Warwickshire. Rain eventually completely washed out the game.
That roughly mirrors Arafat’s journey to this point. Lots of second team cricket and lots of waiting. Coincidentally, Surrey first got a taste of the county seconds, playing alongside Pope in 2017 against a Kent XI that also included Crawley. Stints for Derbyshire and Essex twos followed. There was a period in the MCC Young Cricketers’ Scheme, but it ended after just one year. To have fallen through the gaps in a program that is considered a safety net must have been a blow. But Arafat’s persistence won out.
He gives special credit to the South Asian Cricket Academy, an initiative set up ahead of the 2022 season that has not only caught him but made him thrive. SACA, co-founded by Dr Tom Brown and former England international Kabir Ali, made arrangements for Arafat to move to Birmingham over the winter to participate full-time in their training programme. He then demonstrated his talents at a trial session at the Leyton Cricket Ground indoor school in February, in the presence of Kent head coach Matt Walker.
After impressing in Kent’s seconds with 17 wickets, he was offered a contract earlier in the week to improve the club’s bowling depth, becoming SACA’s seventh “graduate” to move from the scheme to a district contract. All the hard work, all the second team performances, all the waiting had paid off. That he is only one of three British Bangladeshis to have been employed by a province – a community of over 600,000 – speaks to the necessary work SACA is doing to improve British Asian representation in the province.
“I worked hard for this,” Arafat said. “Seven years is a long time to become a professional cricketer. Playing for different counties, trying out. There are quite a few other people, not just me. There are a lot of people trying, still trying. I have happened to be in Kent in the pre-season, and being with SACA obviously helped me. I’m going to thank Dr. Tom Brown for helping me through the winters.”
Arafat’s teammates from Blackheath Cricket Club have been at the Oval for the past few days, meeting with him between spells and occasionally using the hoardings to drum their approval during his 20 overs. His twin brother is watching him closely and there is hope that his parents will be there on Saturday.
They will have to watch him bat first as Kent tries to get a good enough lead to give him and their bowlers something to work with. That night watchman Wes Agar was one of four lost in the evening session at least means a few batters will be coming to boost this score in the second innings, along with Crawley who seems settled and hungry for something big.
Surrey could argue that they should be further up front given the nature of some of the decisions against them. Most controversial was Sibley’s on the stroke of lunch, after Joey Evison found his lead. In real time, it looked like a spectacular dive catch from Leaning to his left, but replays weren’t convincing. Even Sam Curran, always of Surrey but a Punjab king until the end of May, took to Twitter to voice his opinion – not at all, to paraphrase – with an accompanying screenshot, both of which were deleted rather quickly.
Lawes also felt sad when Agar used the new ball to get some extra lift off the pitch. One edge ran up to first slip, though assessment of the ball’s reps and loop suggested the deflection was from his body’s right shoulder rather than the bat. It is fair to say that they had their revenge by stumps.
Vithushan Ehantharajah is an associate editor at ESPNcricinfo