DURHAM seem to have signed a real Jekyll and Hyde character in Shoaib Akhtar, who at times looks as though he can't be bothered to live up to his nickname.

"Rawalpindi Express?" one member was heard to ask. "He's more like the Rawalpindi Rickshaw."

But his lacklustre efforts on the first day against Yorkshire were forgotten by the time he had played a huge part in securing victory. His burst of three for none in 11 balls early in Yorkshire's second innings turned the game, but just when the captain would have wanted another couple of overs from him he disappeared because of blisters caused by his new boots.

This might look unprofessional, but there are no complaints from Durham, with coach Martyn Moxon saying: "He has his boots specially made because of his flat feet and he has about six pairs on the go.

"He has come off the field a few times because the plasters have come off his blisters. It's good that we have a bit of a break now because when he's bowling flat out for any length of time he needs a period of recovery. It's a challenge for us and for him to keep him fresh and fit for the rest of the season.

"He's very much up for it and he's enjoying his time here and wants to prove to people what he can do."

JUST when Durham's injury jinx shows signs of abating, it has struck the Guru. That's the players' nickname for former Australian Test off-spinner Ashley Mallett, whose coaching stint has been interrupted by suffering two broken fingers in the nets. He was trying to catch a drive by Gary Pratt when it happened. "It's a nuisance for him, but it shouldn't stop him doing his work," said Martyn Moxon. "He works with a few counties and he has gone back to Scotland at the moment.

"We sent Nicky Phillips and Graeme Bridge to work with him the winter before last and it's important that we have him back to check on their progress. He can talk at their level and they relate to him well."

Moxon added that Durham's other spinner, Michael Gough, has not been bowling because of a back problem.

TO turn their first championship win against Yorkshire (achieved at Headingley) into their first championship double was a remarkable feat by Durham. Now they have an immediate chance of recording a second double when they visit Derby on Thursday.

Although Durham regularly beat Derbyshire at home, they have had little joy at Derby. But as Dominic Cork's men have lost seven successive championship games, they should be there for the taking.

Durham's win on Friday did not lift them out of seventh place, but they are only 22.25 points behind third-placed Glamorgan with a game in hand.

IT was ten years on Saturday since Ian Botham walked off the Racecourse ground at Durham never to play again. While Andrew Flintoff is the latest to shoulder the burden of being dubbed "the new Botham," Durham's search for an all-rounder of any kind still struggles to bear fruit.

Ian Smith was the first to be given the chance to fill Botham's shoes, but he wasn't helped by his membership of the Wayne Larkins Drinking School. Bits-and-pieces players like Shaun Birbeck and Marc Symington have been given chances but found wanting, Yorkshireman Michael Foster showed Botham-like qualities but was cut down by chronic back trouble, and now the three-year flirtation with Danny Law could be nearing an end.

He has been back on the scene recently following illness, but if he doesn't make the side for tomorrow's floodlit match at his old stamping ground at Hove it is difficult to see him getting back in, barring an injury to Vince Wells.

Although his bowling leaves him a little short of being a genuine all-rounder, Paul Collingwood should be back in three or four weeks, and if Durham have a full hand to choose from in the final month places will be at a premium.

EVEN though he has another Test cap, Martin Love must be wishing the Australian selectors had not required him to take a three-week break from his Durham duties after suffering the embarrassment of a duck in the first Test against Bangladesh.

Going in at No 6 after the previous two batsmen, Darren Lehmann and Steve Waugh, had scored centuries, Love was bowled to record his second successive nought following his second innings failure at Worcester. The scale of the mismatch, of course, means he would have no second chance in the Darwin match, and it would be good if the Aussies sent him in a little higher in the second Test.

DURHAM are offering membership for £60 for the rest of the season, or £35 for those aged 60-plus. There are five home National League matches left and three championship games, against Somerset, Glamorgan and Hampshire. Membership also offers a priority booking period for the one-day international between England and New Zealand.

Read more about Durham County Cricket Club here.