England leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed brought up his fifth century of the County Championship 2025 season on the opening day (July 29) of the division two fixture between Leicestershire and Kent.
Batting first at the St Lawrence Ground in Canterbury, Leicestershire were at 37-1 when Rehan arrived at the crease. He was given an early reprieve while batting on zero and made full use of the lifeline. Rehan was particularly impressive with his drives, showcasing a range of shots including on-drives, straight drives, and cover drives. He reached his fifty in style, pulling Wes Agar over square leg for a six to bring up the milestone in just 70 deliveries.
The all-rounder pressed on, reaching his hundred in another 57 balls with a single off Matt Parkinson. By the time he brought up his three-figure mark, he had struck 16 fours and a six. Parkinson eventually got the better of him in the 60th over, but not before Rehan had compiled a superb 156-ball 119, studded with 17 fours and three sixes.
Rehan's 𝗙𝗜𝗙𝗧𝗛 @CountyChamp century of the summer. 💯🔥
— Leicestershire CCC 🦊 (@leicsccc) July 29, 2025
He'd look pretty good in that Ashes squad, @englandcricket. ✈️#Foxes🦊 pic.twitter.com/gQZUtzXQUK
Rishi Patel also scored an 85 off 133 balls as Leicestershire reached stumps at 386-9. Parkinson (7-104 off 27 overs) was the pick of the Kent bowlers.
Match 97, Kent vs Leicestershire
vs
- Ball by ball Over
Rehan Ahmed continues exceptional batting form
Rehan has now scored hundreds in three consecutive matches, having earlier struck 115 against Derbyshire and 106 against Kent. With that, he has also drawn level with Northamptonshire’s Saif Zaib’s hundred-tally – five – the highest across both divisions of the competition this year. Rehan’s batting average for the season now stands at 50.66 from 12 innings, having compiled 760 runs in total.
While Rehan’s batting has taken centre stage for most of the season, he also showcased his magic with the ball against Derbyshire, twice surpassing his previous best figures – first with 6-51, then with 7-93. In the process, he became the first Englishman since Ian Botham to score a century and take 13 wickets in a first-class match. Botham’s feat (114 runs and 13-106) came in the 1980 Mumbai Test against India at the Wankhede Stadium, which England won by 10 wickets.
Image credit: X/ Leicestershire CC
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