DURHAM yesterday completed the signing of Australian seamer Mick Lewis as their second overseas player for next season.

They also announced that they have promoted four academy products, all batsmen, to the full-time staff, including Ben Harmison.

Harmison, who will be 20 in January, has gone straight from the Academy to the full-time staff after averaging 48 in three-day cricket for the A team this summer.

A left-handed batsman who also bowls brisk medium pace, he has played for England Under 19s and is the brother of England paceman Steve Harmison.

Kyle Coetzer, James Lowe and Gary Scott have all been promoted from the status of development players, and with the addition of former Cambridge UCCE wicketkeeper Garry Park the full-time staff will number 22.

Mark Turner and David Barrick remain development players and are joined by Newcastle-born Mark Stoneman, a left-handed batsman who is promoted from the academy.

Lewis had two brief stints with Durham this summer, either side of Ashley Noffke's injury-ruined stay. In five championship games he took 26 wickets at 23.61 and in his final appearance he took four for 13 in the totesport League win at home to Leicestershire.

He had to leave early because he was a witness at the manslaughter trial surrounding his former Victoria coach David Hookes. He then joined Durham skipper Mike Hussey on the Australia A tour in Pakistan.

Durham coach Martyn Moxon said: "Mick made a hugely positive impact on the field and in the dressing room and we look forward to having him back for a full season."

* Captain Michael Vaughan believes the success England's batsmen had against Shane Warne in the Ashes series will stand them in good stead for the tour to Pakistan.

The squad fly to the sub-continent today for one of the most testing trips in international cricket.

Many touring sides have come unstuck in Pakistan after struggling to come to terms with the heat and dusty pitches, plus the food.

Most of Vaughan's squad have not experienced a tour to the sub-continent and after the seamer-friendly pitches of an English summer, they will find spinners coming to the fore in Pakistan.

However, the captain is confident they can adapt quickly, believing the form they showed against the greatest spinner in the history of the game during a victorious Ashes series highlighted how they are no longer overawed by slower bowlers.

''I would be very surprised if we go to Pakistan and it doesn't spin. But we have become decent players of spin over the last few years,'' said Vaughan.

''Look at the World XI team (in the recent ICC Super Test in Australia) and the success Stuart MacGill and Warne (both leg spinners) had against the best players in the world.

''That shows what success we had against Warne. He managed to take 40 wickets but we took him for a few an over.''

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