Australia, Sri Lanka ready to seize the day

Bridgetown, Barbados: And so the dust is ready to settle after the final ball is bowled at the Kensington Oval, venue for the 2007 Cricket World Cup final between Australia and Sri Lanka here today.

At stake is prize money of $5 million (Dh18.4 million), but more importantly should Australia win, it would be their third Cup title, endorsing critics' claims that they are arguably one of the greatest ever teams in contemporary cricket, along with Clive Lloyd's West Indies outfit - who also won three world cups.

Sri Lanka, on the other hand, hope to win their second World Cup title putting them ahead of neighbours India and Pakistan, who have won one each.

The tournament, despite average crowd turnouts (8,500 per game), will go down in history as one of the most controversial ever, with Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer's murder being the high point. It will also be recorded as the graveyard of cricket coaches with as many as eight of them having quit, or being sacked.

But there is everything to play for as Australia and Sri Lanka square off today. The match starts at 5.30pm UAE time.