LANCASHIRE are to fly Muttiah Muralitharan back from Sri Lanka for their last Championship match of the season against Kent - which they may need to win to avoid relegation.

Murali is currently at home playing in a Test series against India, but he will be free for the Kent game which does not start until September 12.

When the off-spinner left Old Trafford in June after taking 45 wickets in six Championship matches, Lancashire were hoping to bring him back to help them clinch the title.

Instead they have lost three and drawn three of their last six matches to slump into relegation danger.

But Lancashire salvaged some more respectability in the National League yesterday by denting Hampshire's hopes of promotion from the Second Division.

Promotion has long since been out of the question for Lightning after their awful start to the season but they produced a much-improved performance to beat Hampshire by 43 runs on their first visit to the new West End ground in Southampton.

Lancashire were in early trouble at 12 for two but John Crawley (84 not out) and Andy Flintoff (78) each hit a season's best in a third wicket stand of 151.

Glen Chapple then picked up two early wickets in Hampshire's reply, and although Zimbabwean all-rounder Neil Johnson hit 67, when he was bowled by Joe Scuderi, the rest of the Hawks batting tumbled to 169 all out.

Chapple ended with three for 19 from seven overs, his best one-day performance of the season, with two wickets for Scuderi and tidy spells from Flintoff and John Wood.

Lancashire now move on to Hove for another National League game against Sussex on Thursday before returning north to start their preparations for the Championship crunch against Kent.