DURHAM have a dual incentive in going for a hat-trick of one-day wins against Lancashire at Old Trafford tomorrow.
Victory would keep them at the top of the Norwich Union League second division and give them a psychological advantage ahead of their C & G Trophy quarter-final at Blackpool on July 25.
After their Benson & Hedges win at Liverpool, Durham beat Lancashire by 24 runs at the Riverside in the NU League and now face the reverse fixture with growing confidence.
The Red Rose men have been a shadow of their former selves in one-day cricket this season, winning only two of their six league games to date to lie in sixth position.
With Muthiah Muralitharan now back in Sri Lanka, they could draft in left-arm spinner Gary Keedy or off-spinner Gary Yates. But they are unlikely to want to take on Durham in a battle of spin as they came off second best in that department at the Riverside.
Nicky Phillips took four for 21 and Michael Gough two for 27 as Lancashire slipped from 83 for no wicket to 187 for eight.
That was the match in which Danny Law opened for Durham for the first time, scoring 45, and Lancashire responded by sending in Glen Chapple as a pinch-hitter. He belted 52 before Andrew Pratt stumped him.
Chapple is fit again after being out for a week through injury, and it will be interesting to see if he goes in first again or John Wood keeps the job against his old colleagues after deputising successfully in the C & G win against Sussex in midweek.
Durham will select from the same squad which was on duty at Bristol on Wednesday, with the only possible change involving the recall of Nicky Hatch.
He has recovered from the back problem which kept him out of the win against Gloucestershire and could take over from Stephen Harmison.
Nicky Phillips needs a few more days for his hand injury to settle down, so Graeme Bridge will definitely get another chance after his Man of the Match performance at Bristol.
Bridge has another quarter-final lined up next Thursday, for the Durham Board XI against Lincolnshire at Darlington in the ECB 38-County Trophy.
But he will have to miss that if he is selected for his second first-class appearance against Sussex at the Riverside on Wednesday.
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