Hampshire odds-on for Lord's final

The Test series may be over but the big games keep coming and Hampshire and Durham square off on Saturday in the final of the Friends Provident Trophy, a match that could give Shane Warne the chance to lift his first major trophy for Hampshire.

England stars Paul Collingwood (Durham), and Kevin Pietersen, Dimitri Mascarenhas and Chris Tremlett (all Hampshire) have been cleared to play but the news that Stephen Harmison is injured and will miss out has forced bet365 to cut Hampshire to 8/13 (1.61) for victory, while Durham have drifted again to 5/4.

Durham do, however, have the huge bonus of having Shivnarine Chanderpaul in their side.

On paper, Hampshire, led so well by Warne, are the obvious favourites

The key to Hampshire's strength is their depth. If Pietersen doesn't make the big score, the likes of John Crawley will, while their bowling is more than adequate, led by Stuart Clark, Tremlett and the brilliant Warne.

Durham will have their hands full, but in Michael Di Venuto, they have an excellent opener, while the likes of Collingwood, Scott Styris and Dale Benkenstein are never to be written off. And in Chanderpaul, they have the man who single-handedly made West Indies look a reasonable side.

Playing at Lord's will bring out the best in some players and cause others to freeze but one thing you can be sure of - Warne will love it. The Australian is still a brilliant bowler, and handles his side superbly, getting the best out of them more often than not.

Top bat
No prizes for guessing that Pietersen is the favourite to top-score for Hampshire and it would not be at all surprising if the man who loves the limelight smashes another hundred at the home of cricket. Bet365's 11/4 (3.75) is a pretty good price.

Crawley, who retains his consistency well into his twighlight years, is next at 3/1, Michael Lumb is 11/2, the same price as Chris Benham, while Michael Carberry and Jimmy Adams are both 13/2.

For Durham, bet365 make Chanderpaul the favourite at 3/1, while Collingwood and Di Venuto are both 10/3, just ahead of Benkenstein is 4/1.

Philip Mustard is 5/1, Will Smith is 6/1 and Kyle Coetzer is 13/2.