Yorkshire’s challenge in the Clydesdale Bank 40 appears to be all but over after a third defeat in the tournament today.

This time it was Kent who came out on top against the Tykes – winning an enthralling game by two wickets with just two balls to spare to condemn the county to a third loss from their opening four group games.

The hosts are unlikely to be comforted by the fact they played their part in a gripping encounter, given the circumstances, but on a cold day at Headingley there was certainly no lack of entertainment.

After only posting 230-7 from their 40 overs, some disciplined bowling took the game to the last over.

Kent needed four from it – with Ajmal Shahzad ousting Geraint Jones with the first ball to leave them on 227-8.

He followed it up with two more good deliveries to set the visitors three runs to win from the last three balls but that was as good as it got, with Ashley Shaw pulling him to the boundary to bring the match to a close.

The nail-biting end made Yorkshire’s effort with the bat all the more frustrating.

After losing the toss and being put in, captain Andrew Gale and Jonathan Bairstow got them off to a terrific start.

They raced to 48-0 after less than seven overs before Gale was ousted by Azhar Mahmood to slow the rate.

Bairstow was soon on his way for 22 before Gary Ballance, on his first start for the first-team in 2011, and Shahzad played individual cameos to give the home crowd hope.

Ballance made 47 until he was comically run out following a mid-wicket collision with Shahzad.

The England fast bowler made amends by plundering 11 boundaries in a breezy 59 to bring the Yorkshire innings to an end on a high.

It was not quite enough in the end though, with Kent’s late success another blow in what is becoming a disappointing start to Yorkshire’s one-day season.

It means they have now lost as many matches as any of the teams who qualified for last season’s semi-final – to leave them realistically needing to win their remaining eight games to even give themselves a chance of replicating last year’s run to the last four.