SHANE Warne last night compared Durham wicketkeeper Phil Mustard to Australian legend Adam Gilchrist, and urged the country's selectors to fast-track the 24-year-old into England's one-day side.

Opening the batting in partnership with Michael Di Venuto, Mustard's quickfire 49 laid the foundations for Durham's 125-run win over Hampshire in the Friends Provident Trophy final at Lord's.

Sunderland-born Mustard scored 484 runs in his 11 Friends Provident Trophy matches - more than any other player in the country - and has also taken more first-class catches this season than any other wicketkeeper.

With Matt Prior having struggled in the last two Tests of the summer, England's wicketkeeping position is up for grabs, and after drawing a clear comparison with his compatriot Gilchrist -viewed as the model for a wicketkeeper-batsman - Warne insisted that Mustard was ready for the international arena.

"In Nic Pothas, I have been saying for a long time that we have the best first-class wicketkeeper in the country and, in Phil Mustard, I think that Durham have the best one-day wicketkeeper in England at the present time," said Warne.

"I've thought for a while now, pretty much from when we played against him a month or so ago. That game at the Rose Bowl was the first time I'd really seen him in the flesh and, even though he only got 30, his ability was clear to see.

"He is a class act and, I wasn't going to say this because I was going to save it for my Times column, but I think you can guess who he reminds me of. If you take a stab in the dark, I think you might know who I mean."

This weekend's final was hardly one to remember for Warne, who finished with figures of 0-46 as Durham posted the highest 50-over total in Lord's final history.

The Hampshire skipper was unable to stem Durham's flow of runs, and was forced to look on helplessly from the balcony as his first two batsmen were dismissed to the opening two deliveries of their innings.

After a decade of almost unchecked success on the international stage, Warne was understandably dejected to have finished this weekend's game as a loser. For the good of English cricket, however, he was quick to acknowledge the benefits of a Durham victory.

"I'm hurting because I hate losing and this was a final," he said. "But I wouldn't have done anything differently. We were just outplayed by a better side on the day.

"Things went Durham's way, which is normally the case when you are playing the better cricket and it is probably good for county cricket that a new team like Durham has won a final like this.

"It's certainly good for them, they are an excellent side, and you have to take your hat off to them when they play like that."

Warne has one more year on his contract with Hampshire and fully intends to see it through.

Hampshire are looking into the possibility of freeing up another overseas spot by virtue of the fact that Warne's mother was born in Germany.

It has become front-page news in his home country, but Warne said: ''I am Australian, as simple as that, and I always will be. I'm not going to be Adolf Warne or anything like that - I'll always be Shane Warne.

''This thing has got a bit out of hand. Just calm down a little bit.''