THE predictable retirement of Gavin Hamilton from first-class cricket was announced yesterday by Durham as they wait to discover whether Nicky Peng and Gary Pratt will accept the offers of one-year deals.

Glamorgan, who will pass Durham on the way back down to division two, are believed to be interested in both and they are unlikely to be alone.

Peng was conspicuous by his absence when Durham were celebrating their promotion double last weekend and Player of the Year Dale Benkenstein believes it would by a positive move for the former England Under 19 captain to join a county where the pitches are better suited to his strokeplay.

Glamorgan showed an interest in him even before he signed for Durham and he made his top championship score of 133 at Cardiff two years ago.

Even though there seemed little prospect of Hamilton having a future in the game after his bowling yips resurfaced, he was preferred to Peng and Pratt at the top of Durham's one-day order towards the end of the season.

He has now retired at the age of 31 and will take up a post with Caledonian Breweries while he also hopes to continue playing for Scotland. He has helped them to qualify for the 2007 World Cup.

Durham coach Martyn Moxon insisted that Hamilton would have to play as an all-rounder when he signed his former Yorkshire teammate two years ago.

But after the Scot's first season with Durham was interrupted by injury, his second ran into trouble in May, when the bowling problems he experienced in his last two seasons with Yorkshire returned to haunt him.

Moxon said: "Gavin has been an excellent member of our squad. Although he played only a handful of first team games his contribution on and off the field has been extremely valuable."

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