HAMPSHIRE have to beat a Durham side including Ben Stokes to stay in the Specsavers County Championship’s first division.

A high-scoring draw may be enough if Warwickshire lose at home to Lancashire, in the match between the only sides Hampshire can catch, writes Simon Walter.

But Hampshire know a 22-point win will definitely be enough to complete another Great Escape.

Beating Durham will give them 16 points. And if they do so by scoring 300 and bowling the visitors out in the first 110 overs of each first innings they will have the six bonus points required to overhaul Warwickshire or Lancashire - whatever the result at Edgbaston.

If Lancashire gain maximum bonus points but still lose, 22 points would put Hampshire level with the Red Rose county but be enough to keep them up, having lost fewer games.

At one stage it looked as though the final match of the season, which starts at The Ageas Bowl today (10.30am start), would decide who goes down with Nottinghamshire.

But Durham secured their place in the top flight for another season by beating Surrey last week.

Durham still have fourth place to play for but, with their first division status assured, will arrive at The Ageas Bowl demob-happy.

“That can be dangerous, they can play with freedom and that is something we can’t control,” said Hampshire director of cricket Giles White, whose side was 16 points adrift of Sussex going into the final game of last season.

“It is a slightly better position that we were last year, but the same in that we have to win. There are a lot of different permutations but if we win we won’t go down.

“The boys are looking forward to it, they’ve played some excellent cricket in the last few months, they haven’t taken a backwards step in challenging circumstances.We’ll be going in very positive.

“Ideally we wouldn’t be in this position but we have be brave and do the hard yards over the first couple of days.”

Durham will field, Mark Stoneman and SCott Borthwick, who are playing their last games for their home county before joining Surrey.

England’s Mark Wood has been replaced by Chris Rushworth so he can rest ahead of the forthcoming tour of Bangladesh.

But Stokes is set to play his first Championship match at The Ageas Bowl since hitting Liam Dawson for five successive sixes in 2011.

Hampshire (from): Smith, Adams, Alsop, Vince, Ervine, Dawson McManus, Andrew, McLaren, Berg, Wheal,Crane, Carter.

Durham (from): Collingwood (c), Stoneman, Jennings, Borthwick, Stokes, Clark, Richardson (wk), Pringle, Weighell, Coughlin, Carse, Onions, Rushworth