The final countdown

Since Australia arrived in England three weeks ago, the psychological point-scoring has been unabating and unabashed. There have been ghosts and boasts, embarrassments and barrages but now, finally, comes the chance to land the first truly telling blow at Lord's this weekend. And the two sides will head into the NatWest Series final on a pretty even weighting.

Australia may have shaded the points in the latest completed bout, but England beat them in the first round and, having finished top of the table, they have proven they are no pushover. Both sides named a full-strength side for the last match, a dress rehearsal which ebbed and flowed but was finally washed out. And it is likely that they will stick to those sides for the final.

It was a stormy end to a stormy encounter at Edgbaston, in which Simon Jones and Matthew Hayden nearly came to blows. But Australia's captain Ricky Ponting was quick to dismiss the incident. Speaking at a press conference ahead of the final he said: "It is water under the bridge." His opposing captain, Michael Vaughan, agreed. "As soon as the game was finished the other day most of it was forgotten," he said. Nevertheless, the matter will add some spark to what will already be a crackling occasion, given that it is a Lord's final.

History suggests that chasing in Lord's finals is the preferred option, but last year New Zealand bucked that trend, becoming the first side in five NatWest Series finals to win batting first. England's strength in one-day cricket is still chasing, as their batsmen are more comfortable knowing their target, especially on a quick Lord's outfield where there will be plenty of runs up for grabs.

Whenever they bat, Kevin Pietersen could be promoted to No 4 to exploit his big hitting potential. "He looks like a player who if he gets in could get a real big score and go beyond a hundred," said Vaughan, "he's got that many shots." Pietersen will use the match to continue his aim of forcing his way into the Ashes side although, of course, he will concentrate on the matter in hand in the meantime.

But England's one-day form remains as inconsistent as Pietersen's hairstyle. Last season they failed to qualify for the Natwest Series final, then made the final of the Champion's Trophy before, this year, losing 4-1 in the one-day series in South Africa, where they were without their star allrounder Andrew Flintoff who had an ankle injury. "Having someone like Freddie Flintoff back bowling has been a big key for us," said Vaughan. "His bowling, which we missed immensely in South Africa, has been very important in this series."

But if he and Pietersen can star togther with the bat then their fireworks may be enough to grab London's attention on what will be a busy day for the capital. Elsewhere, Live8, the Gay Pride March and Wimbledon are all taking place. Flintoff and Pietersen will hope that, should they bat together, their second partnership will return better results than their much-awaited first stand together, which posted a squib-like 9 runs at Durham.

The bookies have made Australia marginal favourites, at 4/7, with England priced 5/4. England's batting hasn't been the most convincing against the Australian big guns this tournament; their opening pair of Andrew Strauss and Marcus Trescothick in particular. Strauss has made scores of 16, 3 and 25, while Marcus Trescothick has struck 27 in three innings, at an average of just 13.5. Now is the time for them to start firing.

For Australia, once again Andrew Symonds will be their key player. Symonds has made himself indispensable with both bat and ball ever since he returned from his two-match ban for staying out late drinking. He's in-form and in-yer-face. As Ponting admitted, "He is vital to us" - and Australia found out just how vital when they lost both matches which he missed, including that defeat against Bangladesh. Symonds is now pushing for a Test place, and he's not the only one.

Brett Lee has been Australia's most dangerous bowler on the tour so far, as batsmen have struggled against his pace. He knows that a devastating performance at Lord's will present an unanswerable case for his inclusion in the first Test of the Ashes series which begins in three weeks' time. Brad Hogg and Glenn McGrath are also likely to return, having missed the last dead rubber against Bangladesh.

It's the final that everyone expected - although Australia's passage to Lord's didn't go entirely to plan. But Bangladesh have now gone, leaving the big boys to grapple. The Ashes, they are coming, but the summer begins here.

England (probable) 1 Marcus Trescothick, 2 Andrew Strauss, 3 Michael Vaughan (capt), 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Andrew Flintoff, 6 Paul Collingwood, 7 Geraint Jones (wkt), 8 Ashley Giles, 9 Darren Gough, 10 Simon Jones, 11 Steve Harmison.

Australia (probable) 1 Adam Gilchrist (wkt), 2 Matthew Hayden, 3 Ricky Ponting (capt), 4 Damien Martyn, 5 Andrew Symonds, 6 Michael Clarke, 7 Mike Hussey, 8 Brad Hogg, 9 Brett Lee, 10 Jason Gillespie, 11 Glenn McGrath.