BARBADOS: CRICKET: Australia arrrive in Barbados for Cricket World Cup

The Australian Cricket Squad arrived in Bridgetown, Barbados on Thursday (March 1) in preparation for the World Cup which opens play next week. Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago are among the nine host nations while Guyana also becomes the first South American country to stage World Cup matches. Australia have lost their number one ranking to South Africa, who crushed India and Pakistan at home. They have also lost their paciest bowler Brett Lee, whose replacement Stuart Clark was approved by the International Cricket Council on Wednesday. They will start the tournament without opener Matthew Hayden and all-rounder Andrew Symonds who are both injured. But Australia will still field two of the world's top three one-day batsmen in Michael Hussey and captain Ricky Ponting and any hint of complacency has been extinguished after a 2-0 loss in the tri-series finals to England followed by a 3-0 whitewash in New Zealand. "It's always going to be pretty hard to replace a Brett Lee but we've got Shawn Taylor who can bowl probably a fair bit faster than what Brett's bowled over the past couple of years so he's an exciting prospect for us. Mitchell Johnson, I think he'll get his chance to stand up as well, and Stewart Clark back into the squad whose got a fantastic test record, so hopefully all those guys can stand up for us," captain Ricky Ponting told reporters upon arrival in Bridgetown. The tournament begins with four groups of four with the two leading teams qualifying for the super eight stage. There they will meet each of the other qualifiers with the exception of the side they played in the first round. Already the game of the first round looks to be the March 24 match between Australia and South Africa in St Kitts. The winners will take two points through to the second round plus a clear psychological boost. Hallowed cricket grounds have been reinvented, new stadiums built, and feverish venue preparations have included the repaving of roads and airport upgrades. Tourist attractions and whole towns have been spruced up for the extravaganza, in a cricket-mad region where the game is followed like a religion. An estimated 100,000 fans will be visiting the Caribbean to see the tournament, which starts with an opening ceremony in Jamaica on March 11 and concludes with the final in Barbardos on April 28.

ITN Source | March 3, 2007

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