DURHAM'S visitors in their final two home games will be relying on West Indian pacemen to help them avoid relegation.

The game against bottom club Hampshire starting today will feature Fidel Edwards, who took nine wickets in the match when Dale Benkenstein's men gave themselves a lifeline with a shock 216-run win against Warwickshire in their last outing.

Worcestershire, who are next to the bottom and visit Durham for the final game, have signed Shannon Gabriel to replace spinner Saeed Ajmal for the rest of the season.

Gabriel has played in 14 Tests and will bolster a seam attack in which Joe Leach and Jack Shantry are among the season's leading wicket-takers.

Even when they hung on for a draw with nine wickets down in their home match against Durham in July, Hampshire looked doomed. But the win against Warwickshire has given them hope of survival.

Benkenstein achieved promotion in his first season as Hampshire coach and will be desperate to avoid going straight back down.

He decided prior to Durham's visit that greater reliance on spin at the Ageas Bowl was the way forward, handing England Under 19 leg-spinner Mason Crane his debut with impressive results.

He will know, however, that such a policy is unlikely to be fruitful at Chester-le-Street, where the superior seam attack is likely to be decisive, especially after recent wet weather.

After losing their last three home matches, Durham have slipped to fifth. They are 32 points adrift of second place and 37 ahead of the second relegation spot, which means that a mid-table finish is likely.

They will hand Esh Winnings's Jack Burnham another chance after his impressive half-century on his debut against Yorkshire at Scarborough.

He replaces Graham Clark in the squad, with Jamie Harrison also named.

The final choice will lie between the left-armer and James Weighell.

Durham (from): P D Collingwood (capt), M D Stoneman, S G Borthwick, J Burnham, M J Richardson, G J Muchall, R D Pringle, J W Hastings, W J Weighell, C Rushworth, G Onions, J Harrison.