Warne Plans to Turn Screw on Collingwood's Underdogs

The Friends Provident Trophy final at Lord's today is formally between Hampshire and Durham, but to aficionados of cricketing backchat it brings the enticing possibility of a rematch between Shane Warne and Paul Collingwood. Even in a summer when England's sledging has pushed the boundaries of acceptability, the best contests are well worth restaging.

Collingwood, England's one-day captain, and Warne, the showman Australian who loves to poke fun at him, have built up to this final with a lighthearted verbal skirmish, which might have been regarded as insignificant were it not for the fact that their battle in mid...#8209;innings today could go a long way to deciding the match.

Reminded of it all this week, Collingwood remarked that he did not go looking for trouble but if something needed to be said then it was natural to get involved. When Warne was invited to respond yesterday, his face lit up with amusement. "If he's not going to back down - good old tough Paul - then good luck to him," he said. "He can put the Friends Provident Trophy next to his MBE if Durham win, but it would look better on my mantelpiece and my knighthood is on its way."

Collingwood knows that if he wins his personal contest with Warne then it could not only bring Durham their first Lord's trophy but also give him impetus for England's one-day series against India and the Twenty20 World Cup in South Africa.

Steve Harmison's back injury has encouraged the notion that Hampshire are favourites, but Durham have always reveled in the underdogs tag in their 15 years in the county game.

As Warne shrewdly pointed out: "In Twenty20 and Pro40, the opening overs are so crucial - you have to get runs during the fielding restrictions. The 50-over game is more tactical - it is a more intelligent game. It is a big adjustment."

Warne, meanwhile, is trying to find out if he qualifies for a German passport in order to represent Hampshire as a non-overseas player. "My mum was German," he said. "She came over to Australia when she was, I think, four or five. With only one overseas [player] next year, it's something we're looking at."

Teams

Hampshire probable

Shane Warne, capt

John Crawley

Nic Pothas, wkt

Sean Ervine

Kevin Pietersen

Michael Lumb

Michael Carberry

Dimitri Mascarenhas

Shaun Udal or James Bruce

Chris Tremlett

Daren Powell

Umpires Peter Hartley and Ian Gould. (10.45am start)

Weather Light rain, 21C

Durham probable

Dale Benkenstein, capt

Michael Di Venuto

Philip Mustard, wkt

Shivnarine Chanderpaul

Paul Collingwood

Kyle Coetzer

Ottis Gibson

Liam Plunkett

Gareth Breese

Graham Onions

Neil Killeen

TV Live on Sky Sports 2 10.30am. Highlights: Sky Sports Xtra 8pm

Radio LiveonBBC4LW, & Five Live Sports Extra