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This is happening in the West Indies this time around and everyone is abuzz about it save for the residents and business owners who live near the oval because security is so tight that it is practically shutting everything down.

Anyway, who do you think will with the Cricket World Cup?

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I think this will be a very good World Cup because several teams can now win it. Last World Cup, Australia was the best nation by a long way but right now we are not that far ahead.

If you look at form you would pick Australia or South Africa to win but right now I feel New Zealand, Sri Lanka and even the West Indies are all capable of beating anyone on their day. Even teams like Pakistan, who were perhaps second best until recently, are a very good team. Anyone writes off India to their peril because they still have the second strongest batting line up in the world.

Personally, I don't believe South Africa will win it if they have to play Australia. I still think we have a psychological and talent edge over the Proteas which they must shake off. I would also like to see how they play away from home as a lot of their recent success has been on pitches they suit.

I feel the West Indies and New Zealand are real dark horses. New Zealand have a good lower batting order and play with good spirit. With a fit Shane Bond they look a tough side. I don't take any notice of their series win over Australia because we were missing several key players.

West Indies are at home and have a good look to their side. There are a few handy young fast bowlers who performed admirably at the ICC Champions Trophy and Chris Gayle can demoralise any team. However, I feel they will struggle if the face Australia.

South Africa could win it if they avoid Australia. They are always competitive in one-day cricket and have some world class, experienced players like Kallis and Pollock to lead the team. Ntini is also one to watch out for, he has really come on as a genuine world class player in recent years.

Sri Lanka really need to play at their best to beat the top sides but have the weapons to do so. Their batting is brutal and quick, they have a young sling bowler, Vaas and Murali to take wickets.

I saw India play against The Netherlands and they were a bit disappointing. However Tendulkar and Dravid were in good nick so that should auger well for their campaign.

One team I don't think will win is England. Even though they ended up winning the Commonwealth Series in the finals, they were woeful throughout and I felt Australia were very complacent. They have a few good players like Pieterson and Vaughan, but not the mental strength to beat Australia when it matters.

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I do not have much hope for the West Indies to be honest - they are not disciplined enough and often have 'moods' when it comes to playing. This may be a toss up between Australia and India.

As for the opening ceremony - did anyone see it? I thought it was just okay, but the lighting was extremely poor.

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I saw highlights of the opening ceremony and wish I hadn't. With all due respect, by international standards it was a bit disappointing. The lighting issue also amuses me. They brought in portable lighting. Why couldn't they just hold it during the day or at a stadium with lights? And the camerawork made it difficult to watch because it was very shaky.

But I am not always a big fan of opening ceremonies anyway. It's nice for the athletes and their families but they are often quite tacky affairs.

Let's get back to the sport.

West Indies did fairly well yesterday. They were by no means at their best, but they did enough to win. Chris Gayle's form must be a huge concern though. I think he is a key player for the West Indies if they are to be a genuine hope. JB, can you also tell me why Ian Bradshaw wasn't playing yesterday? Is he just injured or out of form?

This was their most difficult group game and I feel it's a good way to start. You don't want to peak too soon in these tournaments but this means the Windies will carry these points into the Super 8 group stage which increases their chances of progressing further.

Today, Australia should destroy Scotland. I just hope we win the toss and bat first so we can at least get a big score.

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I cannot say why, but some are surprised with the line up, for instance the national TT Captain (his name slips my mind right now) was not chosen.

Yes the opening ceremony was poor, but I believe that was largely due to the lighting - how can you rate what you cannot see? Most of the feedback centered around the show being mostly about Jamaican culture and failed to show the rest of the Caribbean.

West Indies were lucky - that is all I have to say about that match. If they continue to perform with mediocre efforts then they will not win. I must admit that Bravo made some great catches though.

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West Indies

As an update to this Thread - you can see that what I said was vindicated. Yes, they (WI) won the top of their group and then what... fell flat on their face.

Ireland

Ireland seems to be making a name for themselves.

Bahamas

That one overweight guy from the Bahamas... I could not believe how much size he was carrying around for a World Cup event - is he one of the best they have?

I think the final looks like it is going to be between India, Australia, New Zealand and 'x'.

Icc World Cup Cricket

There has a general poor showing in the crowds for this World Cup Cricket tournament because of a number of factors: ticket prices are ridiculous, too many restrictions and people have to work! In some of the islands the government has offered to pay for school children to attend, given holidays and so forth.

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ICC ADMITS THE WORLD CUP IS TOO LONG

ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed accepts that the current format for the cricket World Cup is too long and needs changing.
Ref. BBC