A match crucial to quarter-final qualification

Chaos in Bangalore as fans rush for tickets

The problems surrounding the sale of World Cup tickets in India have descended into chaos, with police in Bangalore conducting a baton-charge on fans queuing up for tickets for Sunday's match between India and England. The 7000 tickets were sold out within three hours, officials said, leaving hundreds of fans - many of whom had queued up overnight - angry and disappointed. 

People started to queue from about midnight but soon after that were asked by the police to disperse. The fans regrouped again at around 5 am and were allowed to queue up but within the hour the crowd swelled and the queue stretched from the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, the venue of the match, onto MG road - ironically, to the crossing named after Anil Kumble, president of the Karnataka State Cricket Association - the host organisation. 

By 8.30, when the tickets began to be issued, the chaos started to descend and soon the police swung into action. AFP reported that several people were injured and taken away on stretchers as police attempted to control the crowd, estimated at 5000. Madhusudhan Ramakrishnan, ESPNcricinfo's stats analyst, was among those who'd queued up from midnight. "The officials initially said only one ticket would be sold per person but suddenly they started to give two per head. Very soon, they said the tickets were sold out. We spotted one policeman holding ten tickets." He said the confusion added to the general sense of anger and restlessness.

The scenes were an eerie echo of the alarm sounded by the ICC in a letter to Sharad Pawar, where it said the high demand for these tickets created the "potential for chaos and physical injury when the box office sales open". 

Javagal Srinath, the former India fast bowler who is now secretary of the KSCA, said 7000 tickets had been sold out, adding that some of the best tickets had been taken by the ICC for their sponsors. However, he said he was hopeful that more tickets would be made available over the next couple of days and would be sold online through Kyazoonga.com, the ICC's official online tickets sales partner. 

"There is a limit to how much we can fulfil people's expectations," Srinath said. "It is a big challenge but even our hands are tied. For a match of this stature, even if you double or triple the amount of tickets for the public, it won't be enough. That's the tradition in India and we expected this mad rush." 

Srinath explained how they arrived at the number of the tickets sold to general public. "There are about 4500 [KSCA] members, and we have to give one extra ticket to them. So that's around 7000 tickets gone there. We also have corporate commitments, and we had to give tickets to the ICC. For the first time, too, all the state Associations have taken their full quota (25 tickets each) of tickets. But we are also thankful that they are sending back some unsold tickets." 

"Some more tickets are expected to be available online. We are getting back some tickets from the ICC and CAB and those will be sold online. They are also willing to sell those tickets on the day of the match. So all is not lost for the fans of Bangalore." 

There was some dark humour too. Asked whether selling tickets was more challenging than bowling for India, Srinath said, "I think bowling at the dirt track was the easiest." 

Sunday's game was switched in late January to Bangalore because of problems at the Eden Gardens stadium in Kolkata where the match, deemed to be the marquee game of the World Cup group stage, was due to be played. 

Thursday's incidents in Bangalore follow widespread criticism of the shortage of match tickets for the general public - only 4000 tickets will be available for the final - and shoddy distribution of tickets bought online. The ICC letter to Pawar, who also heads the tournament's organising committee, warned of the problems and the potential fallout - including lawsuits by angry fans and corporate sponsors who have not received tickets.

Misbah rides on higher confidence

It is difficult to believe both that, at 36, Misbah-ul-Haq hasn't played a World Cup before and that he is playing this one at all. Such was the force of his last axing, from all three formats no less, that until circumstances thrust him into the Test captaincy last October, his career was all but over. 

Yet as the premier domestic batsman in Pakistan in the 2000s, many felt he had been treated unfairly in not being given at least one opportunity between 2003 and 2007; with Inzamam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan in the middle order during that period, however, it was difficult to see how he would get in.

But, like the best actors and boxers, he does comebacks exceedingly well. In 2007, after a four-year exile, he nearly won Pakistan a world title. In this latest return he has been even more remarkable; 65 against Kenya in Hambantota was his ninth international fifty in 12 innings across Tests and ODIs. 

The player, he said during Pakistan's practice at the Premadasa in Colombo, does not change. "I've always said it is important for any player to get some self-belief and confidence back. You start scoring runs, the team starts believing in you and people's expectations of you increase and that gives you self-belief. And as your confidence builds your performance gets better. The player actually remains the same before and after, but with confidence higher, you perform better." 

Had poker been an official pursuit in Pakistan, his face would've won him titles, so expecting him to express regret, or anger, or even blink twice, at being asked about missing past World Cups is futile. He is happy, he says, just to be playing at all. "I think whatever cricket you do play you should think about that. I am enjoying it at the moment, I have always enjoyed playing it, domestically or internationally and I only want to do what I can for the side." 

Misbah's return has fitted in seamlessly with a gradual upswing in Pakistan's batting results over the last year or so, an under-scrutinised aspect of their performances. In 20 ODIs in Sri Lanka, England, the UAE and New Zealand, Pakistan have made 250 or more 13 times. Each member of the top six has made contributions at various stages, so that the problem has been one of plenty, of pacing an innings, of arranging the order so that momentum is not squandered and stability always present. 

Misbah has come, as he did on Wednesday, mostly at five and has batted often in tandem with Younis Khan. Though the poor start then highlighted the calm the pair brings, against a better attack more oomph might be needed through the middle, an Umar Akmal breaking up the pair. Some in Pakistan, Imran Khan no less, want Misbah even higher in the order. 

"The situation as it is, with the way the batting order is, all our batsmen have scored runs," Misbah said. "Kamran [Akmal] comes in at three and he has opened, Younis at four who has mostly played at three, the openers did well scoring hundreds in New Zealand, so we're not really feeling that our batting is missing something. We've got guys scoring runs and performing. Our batting order is fine and it is a good combination at the moment. Whatever the team needs, will happen. None of the players have any issues with where they are batting and what number." 

Few attacks can match Sri Lanka's for potency or variety so Saturday, in what is likely to be an electric atmosphere, will be a comprehensive test of Pakistan. "Sri Lanka always, but especially in the last 2-3 years they have been very consistent, playing good cricket and in home conditions they are a very tough side," Misbah said. 

"To get a good first win in this kind of tournament, with most of your batsmen scoring runs and then convincingly get them out, the morale gets high and players get into touch. It is a very vital match for both sides."

Tahir and de Villiers star in seven-wicket win

AB de Villiers showed his pedigree with his second World Cup hundred, his 10th in all one-day internationals, and the fastest by a South African in a World Cup as South Africa chased down 223 at a canter at the Feroz Shah Kotla, the result sealed in the 43rd over for the loss of only three wickets.

De Villiers, who was named ODI Player of the Year for 2010, barely put a foot wrong in his knock, ticking along at better than a-run-a-ball from the start and sounding an ominous warning for South Africa's opponents in this tournament. He shared in a decisive 119-run stand for the third wicket with Graeme Smith and shut down the game by adding a further 84 in JP Duminy's company. 

South Africa's batsmen built upon the good work of their bowlers as Imran Tahir had a debut to remember, picking up four wickets and striking at crucial moments to peg West Indies back on a pitch that displayed none of the demons that led to the abandonment of the last international game at this ground in December 2009. 

A new-look South African bowling unit kept a lid on a combustible West Indies, the spinners bowling a combined 29 overs for just 138 runs as West Indies imploded to be all out for 222 when, at one stage, 270 had seemed more likely. After the spinners had kept South Africa in control for much of the game, Dale Steyn returned at the death to ensure there would be no late fightback. 

South Africa were in dire need of a counterpunch when de Villiers entered at the end of the fifth over with West Indies' new-ball bowlers in the midst of an inspired opening spell. Hashim Amla, whose 1,322 runs in the year leading up to this World Cup has made him one of the vital cogs in South Africa's one-day line-up, and Jacques Kallis both fell to sharp catches behind the wicket as Kemar Roach bowled with real pace and, continuing the trend already being set by other teams in this competition, left-arm spinner Sulieman Benn shared the new ball with success. 

South Africa were 20 for 2 with that dismissal but, defying West Indies' attempts to keep the pressure on, de Villiers appeared totally in control from the start of his innings. Threading the gap between cover and point on multiple occasions, he sprinted into the 20s at better than a-run-a-ball and South Africa were soon trundling along at well above the asking rate. 

West Indies desperately needed another breakthrough and the talismanic Dwayne Bravo might have been just the man to provide it but in his third over a painful knee injury put an end to his contribution to his team's defence. Attempting to change direction mid-follow through and cut off a drive from Smith, Bravo swivelled awkwardly and immediately fell to the ground, clutching his knee. The physiotherapist was called for and Bravo was helped from the field and taken to hospital for scans. The extent of the damage will not be known until the results of those tests are in. 

South Africa marched confidently on in his absence, de Villiers bringing up a 54-ball fifty with a massive blow over wide long-on in the 22nd over and Smith providing steady support until he missed a straight one from Kieron Pollard and had his middle stump flattened five runs short of a half-century of his own. His departure sparked wild celebrations, and at 139 for 3 in the 29th over there was still a chance the chase could get tricky. There was barely a hint of nerves from Duminy and de Villiers, however, and after a short break for rain they eased South Africa home with minimum fuss, de Villiers reaching his ton from just 97 balls. 

The chase might have been rather more challenging had West Indies' batsmen been able to make more of the solid platform laid by Darren Bravo and Dwayne Smith, who helped their team weather the early departure of Chris Gayle with a 111-run partnership. Dwayne Bravo and Shivnarine Chanderpaul showed some fight with a 58-run stand of their own but there was precious little support from the rest of the line-up. 

The thoroughness of South Africa's gameplans and their willingness to utilise unorthodox tactics was in evidence first in their decision to include no less than three frontline spinners in Johan Botha, Tahir and Robin Peterson and then when, for the first time in his career, Botha opened the bowling and soon snared Gayle with an edge to slip. 

Bravo set the early tone with a couple of deftly glanced boundaries off Steyn and brought up a 55-ball 50 in the 16th over, his third in ODIs, and celebrating the milestone with a remarkable one-handed smite over long-on off Tahir. The century stand was brought up off 117 deliveries in the 20th over, and with West Indies starting to seize the initiative Smith turned to Botha. 

Again the offspinner provided the breakthrough, slipping one past an uncertain flick to pin Bravo in front of middle and dismiss him for 73 despite a slightly desperate referral from the batsman. Tahir then took centre stage, holding a a simple caught-and-bowled chance off Smith for his first international wicket and removing Ramnaresh Sarwan before he had time to settle 

Just as the elder Bravo and Chanderpaul were starting to flow a brainless piece of running put paid to their fightback. A reverse-sweep from Chanderpaul went straight to the man at short third man but inexplicably a run was called for and Bravo was easily run out for 40, the score 178 for 5 in the 38th over.

West Indies unravelled with alarming speed thereafter, their innings sliding swiftly into mediocrity after Chanderpaul, who had upped the tempo with a couple of thumping strikes, chipped Tahir straight to Peterson at long-off. Kieron Pollard's arrival at the crease caused an immediate ripple of excitement among a decent crowd of spectators, but Steyn returned to dismiss him for a golden duck with a skidding inswinger that struck the pad in front of middle and leg. Tahir had his fourth wicket when a wild swipe from wicketkeeper Devon Thomas ended up in JP Duminy's hands, running back from extra cover, and the tail proved no match for Steyn's pace and accuracy as the innings was wrapped up soon afterwards.

Kenya sink without trace in massive chase

Kenya again appeared totally out of their depth and posed no challenge to Pakistan at Hambantota, Collins Obuya's death-or-glory 47 being the only highlight for them as Shahid Afridi helped himself to 5 for 16 in a massive 205-run win, Pakistan's biggest win in World Cups and the eighth largest overall. 

Four of Pakistan's batsmen cashed in to raise half-centuries and set up a total of 317 for 7 after a brief wobble against the new ball and Kenya made little effort to mount a serious challenge in their pursuit, rather looking to a lay a solid platform in the hope of batting out their full quota of overs. That ultimately proved a futile effort, too, although their innings did at least last until the 34th over - longer than their entire match against New Zealand three days ago. 

Kenya's slide began in earnest when Afridi brought himself on and, in his third over, tempted Steve Tikolo down the pitch only for the ball to rush straight on to rattle the stumps. Kenya were 73 for 3 in the 23rd over when Tikolo was dismissed, without any real hope of chasing more than 300 but at least looking steady enough to last the full 50 after the top order had showed at least a little grit. There was no such offering from the middle, however, as the remaining seven wickets fell for just 39 runs in just over ten overs.

Afridi was the chief wrecking ball, quickly ending a bustling innings from Tanmay Mishra and making short work of Jimmy Kamande and Thomas Odoyo as he unfurled a mixed bag of legbreaks, sliders and quicker ones as the ball began to bite and spit off the surface. Amid the carnage, Obuya opened up to smite three enormous sixes but was caught on the boundary attempting a fourth to give Afridi the best figures by a Pakistan bowler in a World Cup, beating Wasim Akram's 5 for 28 against Namibia in Kimberley at the 2003 tournament. Once he went, the end was mercifully quick in coming. 

Ultimately they flattered to deceive, but against expectations Kenya had actually bossed the opening exchanges of the match, Thomas Odoyo and Elijah Otieno showing admirable control with the new ball. Otieno provided the first breakthrough when Hafeez tried to force a length delivery into the leg side but hit it uppishly and Seren Waters, at straight midwicket, leapt to his left and managed to cling onto a juggled catch mere inches from the turf. In the very next over Shehzad, who had scratched around for 17 balls that yielded just a single run, chipped a leading edge to give Jimmy Kamande a simple catch at mid-off and Pakistan were in some serious strife. 

The pressure soon began to lift, however, Kamran Akmal and Younis Khan quickly settling and Nehemiah Odhiambo suffering a shambolic start to his spell as 16 runs came from a first over that included three no-balls. Kamran proved the more fluent of the two early in his innings but Younis provided sensible support and, as the spinners came on, plenty of ones and twos were taken to keep the score ticking over. 

Kamran eased past 50, from 62 balls, and looked set for  plenty more before he charged down the wicket to left-arm spinner Shem Ngoche and was easily stumped. Kenya were buzzing once more with the breakthrough, but despite giving a far a far better account of themselves than they had against New Zealand at Chennai they lacked the necessary firepower to land the killer blow.

Misbah-ul-Haq opened his World Cup account with a massive six off Tikolo and rushed into the 20s at better than a-run-a-ball to complement the more circumspect Younis, who showed the value of steady accumulation before he was dismissed lbw for exactly 50 despite an optimistic review. 

Misbah and Umar Akmal were barely troubled as they set about compiling a 118 runs for the fifth wicket, their partnership exploding into life as the Batting Powerplay was called for in the 44th over immediately after Misbah had reached fifty on his World Cup debut. Umar thrashed 20 off a weary Otieno's seventh over and soon sprinted to the fourth fifty of the innings as the score passed 250 in the 46th over. With Pakistan now swinging from the hip at just about everything, Kenya picked up regular wickets but threatened to unravel completely in the face of an all-out assault. 

Odoyo removed Umar and Afridi from consecutive deliveries to find himself on a hat-trick in the 49th over but speared the next ball acres down the leg side and repeated the blunder later in the same over as battle fatigue set in. Extras, with 46, very nearly became the fifth half-century maker of the innings as Kenya had the ignominious honour of equalling the record for most wides in a one-day international, and there was a visible sense of relief as they finally completed their stint in the field.

Their efforts with the bat quickly put their failures with the ball in the shade, however, and Kenya will need a complete overhaul if they are to challenge anyone in this tournament. At the other end of the spectrum, Pakistan will be pleased with a generally slick and professional performance that has set their campaign off on an overwhelmingly positive note.

Watson looking forward to challenge of opening

When he wasn't hobbling around with a nagging calf strain, Shane Watson spent much of the 2007 World Cup padded up, waiting, and watching Matthew Hayden crush opponents with help from his opening partner Adam Gilchrist. Hayden dominated that tournament more than any other batsman, with three centuries against top teams, and it's a role Watson wants to play this time around. 

So dominant were Hayden, Gilchrist and the rest of the top order that Watson, who was batting at No. 7 during that period, had to face only 85 balls through the entire seven-week event. Fast forward four years and Watson is an established, in-form opener, and Australia will be desperate for him to have a massive series, with less depth and experience in the middle order than in years gone by. 

"It's a different challenge compared to batting at No. 7 in the team that we had," Watson said. "It's a much bigger responsibility opening the batting and trying to lay a great platform for the team like Matt Hayden and Adam Gilchrist did so beautifully throughout their careers. I know it's a big responsibility and I'm really looking forward to it.

"It's a great challenge over here and I've been lucky enough to spend quite a bit of time here over the past two years to get used to the conditions. They're big shoes to fill because [Hayden and Gilchrist] have performed unbelievably well throughout their careers, especially in World Cups." 

Watson enters the 2011 tournament with some formidable figures behind him. He's scored 832 one-day runs in the past year, comfortably Australia's best, and earlier this month he won his second consecutive Allan Border Medal. He didn't just win it, he annihilated all his colleagues by earning 295 votes, a full hundred in front of the second-placed Michael Hussey. 

It's a form-line that will leave opponents scratching their heads as to how to control him. The first team that has to find the solution is Zimbabwe, whose batting coach Grant Flower has been searching for some inside tips from his brother Andy, who as coach of England recently saw Watson plunder 161 at the MCG, after he was one of the few Australians who also had a solid Ashes series. 

"He has been playing brilliantly," Grant Flower said in the lead-up to Monday's game. "I spoke to my brother last night and asked him the same thing, and he didn't have many answers. But there are a lot of class players and there are no obvious weaknesses, otherwise they wouldn't be playing at international level. But our main strength is spin, so hopefully we can get it in the right areas and he might succumb to the same pressures that everyone else is under." 

One thing in Zimbabwe's favour is that it was spin that troubled Australia during their two warm-up losses, against India and South Africa over the past week, although Watson fell to pace both times in making 33 and 0. Australia know they must improve from those two opening encounters, although Watson was confident that the defeats were not an indication of how the rest of their campaign would unfold. 

"We played some good cricket throughout the summer in Australia but we also knew that there was a little bit of improvement to go in just about all aspects of our one-day cricket," Watson said. "The past couple of days have been excellent for getting used to the Indian conditions and getting our game-plans and our roles in the team exactly where they should be." 

Australia enter Monday's match Against Zimbabwe, in Ahmedabad, hoping to keep their unbeaten run in World Cups going - they have not lost a World Cup game since 1999 - but knowing they should not compare themselves to the teams headed by Ricky Ponting at the past two tournaments.

"I don't really see the pressure to defend the World Cup because we are a very different team to what the team was in 2007," Watson said. "In the end there's pressure on every team to win the World Cup, no matter what."

Kenya bat first as Mills sits out

Jimmy Kamande called correctly at the toss and opted to bat first on a pitch expected to help slow bowlers, as Kenya and New Zealand opened their World Cup accounts in Chennai. This pitch has come in for some criticism from both South Africa captain Graeme Smith and his Australian counterpart, Ricky Ponting, who called it "under-prepared". 

Daniel Vettori, the returning New Zealand captain who was rested for New Zealand's warm-up against India, has also indicated that he expects the pitch to deteriorate over the course of the day, and so the contribution of Kenya's spinners - led by Shem Ngoche, with back-up from Kamande and Steve Tikolo - could be vital as they look to spring an upset. 

Vettori, too, could be a handful for Kenya's inexperienced line-up on a pitch that is practically free of grass but one man who won't be troubling the Kenyans is Kyle Mills, who sits out today with Hamish Bennett and Tim Southee the two frontline seamers for New Zealand. 

While both teams will have drawn positives from their warm-up games - the good form of opener Seren Waters being particularly pleasing for the Kenyans - both also have plenty to prove in this tournament. The Kenyans' decline from the heights of 2003, when they reached the semi-finals of this event, has been alarming, and New Zealand have come out second best in their last three bilateral series. 

Kenya 1 Seren Waters, 2 Alex Obanda, 3 Collins Obuya, 4 Steve Tikolo, 5 Maurice Ouma (wk), 6 Rakep Patel, 7 Jimmy Kamande (capt), 8 Thomas Odoyo, 9 Shem Ngoche, 10 Nehemiah Odhiambo, 11 Elijah Otieno

New Zealand 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Brendon McCullum (wk), 3 Jessie Ryder, 4 Ross Taylor, 5 James Franklin, 6 Scott Stryis, 7 Jacob Oram, 8 Daniel Vettori, 9 Nathan McCullum, 10 Hamish Bennett, 11 Tim Southee

Sehwag and Kohli sink Bangladesh in opener

There was no reprise of the 2007 upset at Port of Spain in the opening game of this World Cup. Instead, Virender Sehwag and Virat Kohli gave evidence of the havoc this Indian batting line-up can create during centuries that demoralised Bangladesh's bowlers. Shakib Al Hasan's men failed to maintain their composure in the grandest match of their lives and conceded a total beyond the reach of their batting abilities. 

There was wisdom in Bangladesh choosing to chase - the previous 12 day-night matches at the Shere Bangla were won by the team batting second - but their bowlers were wayward on a slow pitch that kept low and had loopy bounce not conducive to shot-making. Shakib wanted to keep India below 260 when he put them in because of the dew factor later in the evening. He watched the target surge past that as Sehwag and Kohli, who justified his captain's decision to leave out Suresh Raina, dismantled the attack in front of a shell-shocked crowd and powered India to 370. 

Bangladesh, however, did not go quietly. Faced with an impossible chase, Imrul Kayes attacked from the outset after which Tamim Iqbal and Shakib took charge. They set off at a sprint, swinging fearlessly, edging luckily, and brought cheer to their supporters. What Bangladesh failed to do, though, was sustain the aggression for as long as Sehwag did, and the asking-rate soared irreversibly out of reach. 

With a withering back-foot drive, Sehwag had slammed the first ball of the tournament to the cover boundary, the opening move of his maiden century against Bangladesh silencing a boisterous Mirpur crowd. Shafiul Islam had given Sehwag too much width, and in his second over he strayed twice on to Sachin Tendulkar's pads with dire consequences. His day would not get better and he conceded 69 off seven. 

India raced to 36 after four overs, forcing Shakib to turn to his premier spinner, Abdur Razzak, in the fifth. Razzak looped the ball into Sehwag from round the wicket, following the batsman and cramping him for room as he tried to hit inside out through the off side. Sehwag had scored 12 off his first six balls and 13 off his next 24. 

Bangladesh were listless, though, as Sehwag regained his touch and never lost it again, but they also had some good fortune. A mix-up, during which both Tendulkar and Sehwag were ball-watching, left both batsmen at one end and the Mirpur crowd found its voice again. 

Sehwag, however, continued piercing gaps and hit the tournament's first six, hoisting Razzak over wide long-on to reach fifty off 45 balls. With Gautam Gambhir, Sehwag added 83 to build on the opening stand of 69. While Sehwag used muscle, Gambhir played with precision - dabbing, pushing and chipping into gaps. His dismissal for a run-a-ball 39, bowled by a straight one from Mahmudullah, was against the run of play.

The exceptional feature of Kohli's innings was his driving. On a surface this slow, he reached the pitch of the ball, gathering momentum with a forward thrust of his body, and drove crisply through the off side with a whip of his wrists. He did it against pace and spin, scoring effortlessly at more than a run a ball. In the 33rd over, Kohli drove Naeem Islam twice to the cover boundary and pulled him behind square, placing the ball just wide of the fielders each time. India took their batting Powerplay after the mandatory ball change and scored 48 for 0 during the fielding restrictions. 

At one stage Sehwag, who had Gambhir running for him because of an injury, had a shot at a double-century. He fell in the 48th over, though, almost making good his pledge to bat through the innings. Kohli continued to motor towards a hundred in his first World Cup match and got there off the penultimate ball of the innings, possibly having secured his spot for the rest of the tournament. 

The pitch quickened in the evening, making shot-making easier, and the dew greased the outfield, making the ball harder to grip. But Bangladesh's bowlers had conceded too much ground for their batsmen to regain. They tried, though, and the initial assault on the Indian bowlers was fierce. 

The highlight of that brief blitz was the attack on Sreesanth. Kayes edged, flicked, pulled and drove him for boundaries, and a wayward wide contributed to Bangladesh taking 24 runs off the fifth over. They were 51 for 0. Kayes then tried to force the slower pace of Munaf Patel, who replaced Sreesanth, through the off side and played on, ending the opening partnership at 56. 

Zaheer Khan's control and the introduction of spin resulted in an increase in dot balls and a reduction in boundaries, and by the half-way stage the asking-rate was already 9.36. Tamim and Shakib completed aggressive half-centuries and the rest of the batsmen also struck the ball fluently during a heartening display. Victory, however, had already escaped them. Bangladesh will hope to reproduce this batting effort in a match in which their bowlers get their act together.

Passionate Bangladesh provides perfect opening

Those who were not at the Bangabandhu National Stadium will never know just how successful and moving the opening ceremony of the 2011 World Cup was. Those who saw it on TV would have cringed at Sonu Nigam crooning an English inspirational song, Bryan Adams of all people being the top draw, recordings of Shankar-Ehsan-Loy's unremarkable theme song playing on loop, and the politicians inducing yawns with their speeches. 

Those who were here, though, saw, heard and felt the heartbeat of Bangladesh cricket. What happened inside the stadium, sold out by 25,000 people welcoming the World Cup with open arms, was only a minor part of it. There were 25,000 other fans - and this is a conservative estimate, mind you - outside the stadium, with no hope or intention of getting in, partying away to their own rhythm of vuvuzelas, carrying Bangladesh flags about 50 feet in length, celebrating the World Cup. 

The reception for the World Cup on the streets of Dhaka was the closest cricket can get to a football World Cup. There was no giant screen outside for them, the music could hardly be heard there, there was obviously no alcohol to keep them going, but they danced and made merry, choreographing their own moves. There was not an inch of space in about a kilometre's radius of the Bangabandhu Stadium. Nigam, Adams, Mustafa Kamal (the BCB chief) might as well have not turned up. The crowd either side of the stadium wall couldn't care less. 

There were journalists at the ceremony who have covered cricket World Cups, Olympics, Asian Games, even football World Cups, and they swore they have never seen anything like this before. For a sport that has a bad history with opening ceremonies, nothing could have been more welcome. It didn't need the Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to declare the World Cup open. The World Cup was open when at 2am last night, thousands were dancing on the streets, signing the best-wishes bat, and tens of cars went round and round the Bangabandhu Stadium. And when similar scenes were taking place at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur, which didn't even have anything to do with the opening ceremony.

And to say that the 50-over format is supposed to be dying. Not in the subcontinent, not in Bangladesh by a long shot. However, like with the good old ODIs, the opening ceremony had its middle overs. Nigam followed up his Celine Dion act from the recently-held Filmfare Awards back home in India with a self-composed song titled Rise Up For Glory, which showed that his great voice needs to be rescued, from himself. The politicians took about half an hour of valuable time, and were on the verge of inviting a streaker. The crowd mimicked and made fun of one of them, another speaker gave two different figures for Bangladesh's population in half a minute, and ICC chief Sharad Pawar tried to speak Bangla but no one could make out a word of what he said. 

In the bigger picture, though, all those were minor irritants. There were some very nice touches to the ceremony. Local artists performing before the main function started was one such; getting popular, almost legendary singers, Mumtaz, Sabina Yasmin and Runa Laila, to share the stage was another, as was the crowd going crazy at the first sound of Bollywood music in an overstretched celebration of India. 

Then there was the laser show involving the towering 24-storey Bangladesh Development Bank Building . On a long white curtain, a cricket pitch was projected. From the top floor, men tied on harnesses came down. Two batsmen, bowler, keeper, slip, umpire, cover, midwicket were all there. One man was pulled up suggesting a bowler running in to bowl. The ball was a laser pointer. In one over of "aerial cricket", they showed a forward-defensive, an lbw appeal, a scrambled single and overthrows, a play-and-a-miss, and a boundary. 

The best, and the most unforgettable, moment was when all the captains were brought in on cycle rickshaws. One captain on each rickshaw, with a young boy sitting beside him, waving to the crowd, and the crowd responding generously. They came out alphabetically, Australia first, with one exception - Bangladesh were saved for the last, and more importantly Shakib-Al-Hasan for the very last. Few present at the Bangabandhu Stadium will ever forget the applause that Shakib walked out to. 

Put the applause for the other 13 captains together - and they were not stingy with any of them - but it paled in comparison. That noise was enough to know what the World Cup meant to the country. In that moment, the traffic jams, the poor singing, the long speeches didn't matter. Over to Shakib's team now to make sure the party goes on deep into the tournament. The people deserve it.

Shehzad, Misbah star in Pakistan win

The innocuous practice game had more reasons to be forgotten than to be remembered despite the centuries by Ahmed Shehzad and Misbah-ul-Haq and Junaid Siddique's brave approach. Pakistan beat Bangladesh convincingly by 89 runs at the Shere Bangla Stadium in Mirpur and it was a game that reminded Bangladesh of holes in their system and gave the young Pakistan batsman ideal practice ahead of their first big tournament.

The Pakistan dressing room went through a nervy first 90 minutes before settling in with the 152-run stand between Misbah and Shehzad, but the battle for the 'story of the day', as far as the locals were concerned, would be a tight contest between the ticket bungle-up and Bangladesh's four dropped catches.

When Shehzad walked in with Mohammad Hafeez to open the innings, the ground was half-full with most of the ticket-holders left stranded at a nearby indoor stadium with vouchers in hand. Shehzad cut and drove with ease though wickets fell quickly for Pakistan. After Hafeez drove straight at Mahmudullah at cover, Kamran Akmal and Younis Khan succumbed as soon as spin was introduced, Kamran miscuing a drive and Abdur Razzak foxing Younis for 5. 

The game changed as soon as Misbah took over, with each left-arm spinner looking more ineffective than the other. Razzak and Suhrawadi Shuvo bowled a poor line and their frustration was compounded by dropping catches off each other at long-off when Shehzad was on 42 and 56. Hafeez too had a let-off when Siddique dropped him on 16, a simple chance at midwicket, while Mohammad Ashraful found Shahid Afridi's skier at mid-off hard to handle. 

"The four dropped catches were a bit disappointing. Razzak has never been our best fielder but the others were really disappointing," Jamie Siddons, the Bangladesh coach, said. "I'm glad it was a practice game and not the 19th." 

Shehzad's batting gave Pakistan hope as it reaffirmed his position at the top of the order alongside Hafeez, who did a fine job in New Zealand. Shehzad latched into anything short and there were many opportunities. He hit nine boundaries and a six in his 122-ball 103. "I think he looked really good and he has been doing well since the New Zealand tour where he got a century in the last game," Pakistan's coach Waqar Younis said. "He is in superb touch, and for a young man to be so responsible at such a big stage, it was great."

It was Misbah's timing, however, that caught the eye, his run-a-ball 100 had four big sixes and eight boundaries. He was severe on the spinners, cutting and punching the ball with ease, a handy lesson for batsmen on both sides. 

Bangladesh's chase had a terrible start when Tamim Iqbal played down the wrong line to Abdul Razzaq's first delivery of the innings. Siddique's courage to open up his game was a surprise. Some of his boundaries were exquisite, mainly forcing the ball down the ground but even making room to hit Razzaq over covers. But he holed out to Asad Shafiq off Wahab Riaz, whom Siddique had struck for a six over square-leg an over ago. His 28-ball 38 included six boundaries and the six, and he added with Imrul Kayes, who made 39.

Bangladesh's experiment to use Mushfiqur Rahim at No. 4 failed and so did Ashraful after he struck a boundary off his first ball. Razzaq picked up Shakib and Ashraful after he took out Tamim. Once the game slipped out of Bangladesh's grasp, they used a longer batting line-up to give their batsmen a go before the big game against India on February 19. The result ensured a few more tense net sessions for Siddons and Shakib.

Botha and O'Brien secure tight victory

Ireland secured an impressive four-wicket victory against Zimbabwe to highlight their potential for making a mark on the World Cup. Kevin O'Brien guided them home with three balls spare as he struck an unbeaten 62 after adding 99 with Andre Botha (79) to form the backbone of the chase. 

It meant Elton Chigumbura's 81-ball 103 went in vain and completed back-to-back warm-up defeats for Zimbabwe who were comprehensively beaten by South Africa in Chennai. They weren't helped when Ed Rainsford was forced out of the attack after his first delivery when he was struck on the leg by a straight drive, leaving the bulk of their bowling once again in the hands of the spinners. But in the absence of key batsmen Ed Joyce and William Porterfield, Ireland showed fine composure having lost Paul Stirling in the first over.

Alex Cusack gave the innings an early foundation with his 47, but at 127 for 4 in the 32nd over Ireland still needed a substantial partnership to overhaul the target. Botha provided the anchor while O'Brien brought the muscle to their fifth-wicket partnership as they kept up with the required rate. O'Brien twice cleared the ropes but lost his partner with 19 needed and Gary Wilson followed to provide a few late nerves until John Mooney helped see Ireland home. 

Zimbabwe's top order had struggled, slipping to 12 for 3 and then 100 for 5 as Trent Johnson took 2 for 9 in five overs. Chigumbura and Prosper Utseya added 54 as Ireland used a variety of bowling options and Chigumbura then took charge with the lower order for company. He hit eight fours and three sixes as 90 runs came from the last seven overs, but it still didn't prove enough. 

"It was the worst fielding performance we have produced since I took over as coach," said a disappointed Alan Butcher afterwards. "It was diabolical and unacceptable and I told the players that. We didn't score enough runs and it was actually a good effort to get so close to victory given how poorly we fielded."

For Chigumbura it was a day of mixed emotions: "I'm pleased to have scored the hundred and to get back to form - hopefully I can carry it on for the rest of the tournament. But we will have to improve as a team and it was very disappointing to field like we did and to lose."

Dhoni hints Kohli will play instead of Raina

The most heated debate in recent weeks about the composition of the Indian team for the World Cup has been who among Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina will make the final XI. MS Dhoni gave the first clear indication of the Indian team's decision when he said, after the warm-up match against New Zealand, that the in-form Kohli is likely to play at No. 4 in the opening match against Bangladesh. 

"Right now it is a matter of deciding slots; it's the No. 4 slot where Virat Kohli needs to bat with Gautam [Gambhir] at No. 3, because to perform to his potential Virat needs to bat up the order," Dhoni said in Chennai. "Raina has done well for us batting at No. 5 and No. 6, still there's a bit of a chance that Virat may get an edge over Raina seeing the current form that he [Kohli] is in." 

A starting spot in the World Cup will be a reward for Kohli, who has soared to second spot in the ICC one-day batsmen rankings on the back of several outstanding series. His journey to becoming a first-choice player began with the chances he got in the absence of some of the senior players from one-dayers over the past year. He backed up a match-winning hundred against Australia, in October, with plenty of runs in the home series against New Zealand, before looking the most assured of the India batsmen against the pace of Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel in the South Africa one-day series. He was also fluent in both of India's warm-up matches, making 21 against Australia and a brisk half-century against New Zealand.

Raina has been a regular with the Indian side for a couple of years now, but his patchy recent form seems set to cost him his place at the start of cricket's marquee tournament. He has only one half-century in his previous 21 innings, and even the 25-ball half-century he hammered against New Zealand on Wednesday hasn't, apparently, been enough to convince the team management. 

Another middle-order batsman whose recent form hasn't been great is Yuvraj Singh, who didn't bat in the warm-up against New Zealand. With India playing only four specialist bowlers, and Virender Sehwag's shoulder problem still preventing him from sending down his offspinners, Yuvraj's regular contributions with the ball will be important to the balance of the side. "Once Yuvraj gets going in a series, he makes it a point that India wins that series; that's definitely a big positive," Dhoni said. "Also being a proper left-arm spinner, he has been contributing in all the games right from South Africa, taking the ball away from the batsmen. It's another big asset that he has got which gives him an edge over the others." 

Yuvraj's batting form is shaping up as a big factor in deciding which of Kohli and Raina will play. He will start out the World Cup at No. 5, but could move up a slot if he hits form. If that happens, Kohli looks likely to have to vacate not just the No. 4 spot but a place in the team itself as the management rates Raina as a better player in the lower order, in the subcontinent. "Once Yuvraj gets going and he scores one or two fifties, that will be the time when we will be in a dilemma," Dhoni said, "because that No. 4 slot is very important for us, and if Virat is to bat at No. 5, 6 or 7 then his performance will get affected, because he's the kind of player who likes to spend a bit of time initially and then look to go after the bowlers."

Cheema's onslaught gives England a big scare

Rizwan Cheema gave England a massive scare in their opening World Cup warm-up match against Canada, as he blazed 93 from 70 balls from No. 7 to give life to a faltering run-chase at Fatullah and raise the very real prospect of an embarrassing upset. However, five wickets for Stuart Broad on his return to competitive action, allied to a greater knowhow at the death, enabled England to defend their middling total of 243 despite being outgunned on the boundary count. Having recovered from 28 for 5 inside the eighth over, Canada's challenge finally ended on 227, with 23 balls left unused. 

It was a sloppy display from England at an admittedly outlandish venue, although one that they ought to have been familiar with, having launched their tour of Bangladesh on the same ground in February last year. But it was Canada who looked the most at home in the conditions, as Cheema made light of a dramatic top-order collapse, which included first-over wickets for both the fit-again Ajmal Shahzad and Broad, who had not bowled in a match since tearing stomach muscles at Adelaide in December, but who ended up being England's saving grace with match figures of 5 for 37. 

There had been no inkling of the drama to come when Canada lost half of their batsmen in the space of 44 balls, including the veteran John Davison, whose whirlwind century against West Indies in 2003 is the stuff of World Cup legend. However, Cheema has previous in that regard as well. At King City in August 2008, also against West Indies, he had battered the bowling to all parts in a 69-ball 89, and this time he produced ten fours and five sixes, including two in an over from the otherwise impressive Broad. While he remained, Canada held out hope of a major scalp, but with his hundred in sight, he took the aerial route once too often, and picked out Ian Bell at long-off. 

Still their challenge was not finished, as Chohan - who had earlier impressed with the ball - dug in for a spirited 44 from 74 balls to take the game right down to the wire. Canada entered the final ten overs needing 47 to win, and a clumping Chohan six off James Tredwell took the requirement down below 20. But Tredwell extracted Harvir Baidwan for 14, via a catch to Paul Collingwood, before Broad returned to seal the deal, striking with the first ball of his ninth over to trap Chohan lbw. 

If England seemed an unsettled outfit, that fact was telegraphed at the toss, when Kevin Pietersen was revealed as Andrew Strauss's 13th opening partner, and England's 21st in ODI cricket since the 2007 World Cup. Though Pietersen made an indifferent 24 from 27 balls in his new role before chopping on to Chohan, the message from the England management was that this tactic was intended to be a permanent measure for the duration of the World Cup. 

The timing of the reshuffle is hardly opportune - Pietersen has only ever opened in six of his 223 List A matches, and never at international level, while England's first World Cup fixture is looming against Netherlands at Nagpur in less than a week's time - but in the absence of Eoin Morgan in the middle order, the team think-tank has decided that an injection of urgency in the opening overs is the best way to balance the loss of such a pivotal player. 

England won the toss and batted first, only for Strauss to fall to a strangle down the leg side in the second over of the game. However, Jonathan Trott, whose berth at No. 3 seems set in stone, did what he does best, anchoring the innings with an unhurried 57 from 81 balls, while Matt Prior - the man who opened the batting in Australia last month - showed he was unaffected by a reversion to the lower order, as he upped the tempo with a fluent 78 from 80 balls in the latter stages of the innings. 

In between whiles, England allowed themselves to get bogged down against Canada's nagging repertoire of spin and medium pace. Chohan and Baidwan claimed three wickets apiece, while the legspin of Balaji Rao proved tidy in a ten-over spell that conceded 38 runs and claimed the scalp of Collingwood, whose 9 from 21 balls was another scratchy affair that ended with a wild charge down the pitch and a routine stumping. 

When Luke Wright was trapped lbw for a five-ball duck, England were dicing with humiliation at 158 for 7, but Prior and the lower-order boosted their total with some urgent strokeplay. Broad, back in the side after a two-month lay-off following his torn stomach muscle in the Adelaide Test, clubbed 22 from 27 balls to help hoist the total to 243. At 28 for 5 in reply, it looked like being more than enough. But in the end, England barely bellyflopped over the line.

Ponting wants batsmen to improve against spin

Ricky Ponting has said that Australia's batsmen will have to step up their game if they are to win the World Cup after their dramatic collapse in the warm-up match against India in Bangalore. Chasing 215 to win, Australia were 118 for 1 at one stage, but the middle order disintegrated in stunning fashion to be shot out for 176 on a turning track. 

Ponting blamed the "under-prepared" pitch for the batting debacle. "It was an unusual ODI wicket, I don't remember the last one-day wicket I've played on that spun that much," Ponting said after the 38-run loss. "You have to find a way sometimes to combat good spin bowling on tough conditions like that. Who knows as the tournament goes on, we could face conditions like that somewhere else, and I would like to think that we can play a lot better. Otherwise, we can't win. Hopefully some of the younger guys in the middle order can learn a little bit about starting in tough conditions." 

Australia lost their last nine wickets for 58 runs but Ponting said he wasn't overly concerned as he felt the pitch made batting an arduous task. "Yes, we were disappointing and should have played better, but by the same token even the Indian batsmen would have found it difficult to bat in those conditions. I have played a lot of one-day cricket here in India and Sri Lanka, but I don't think I have ever played in an ODI game with so much spin. We only arrived here two days back and will get more practice as things move on."

Though Australia's batsmen wilted, their seamers, led by the impressive Brett Lee, turned in a good show to restrict India. They also conceded 25 wides but Ponting said that the bowlers know their job. "It's unacceptable to bowl that many wides in one-dayers but the bowlers know that, we know that. Lee and Mitchell Johnson were terrific, John Hastings bowled very well and we still should have chased that many runs. We were 1 for 100 when Tim [Paine] and I were in ..." 

Ponting also spoke about his spinners and how he plans to use them in the World Cup. They rested Steve Smith and played Jason Krejza yesterday, but Ponting assured that Smith will be one of the key players for Australia in the tournament. "Smith will definitely bowl a lot of overs in the tournament. Jason Krejza will learn from his outing today, [Michael] Clarke can bowl when needed but Smith will play a lot." Cameron White, the other batsman who can bowl some spin, has already admitted he is no longer an allrounder and will play as a pure batsman. "Just lost a bit of confidence as a bowler to be honest," White said. "I am just concentrating on my batting and enjoying that role." 

Ponting's batting was one of the major positives to emerge for Australia. He made 57 before becoming the seventh wicket to fall, stumped after missing a slog sweep against Harbhajan Singh. Ponting had suffered a finger injury during the Ashes and didn't play in the seven-match ODI series against England. In the absence of Michael Hussey, there will be immense pressure on Ponting to deliver and he was happy that he could spend some time in the middle. "My fingers are ok. It was nice to spend 80-odd minutes in the middle. It was my first game in six weeks. I certainly wasn't at my best but it was difficult out there and I should be better for the outing. 

"I have to be a consistent run-scorer. I certainly wasn't that in the summer. It was nice to get some runs but it doesn't count for much. The runs I score in the bigger games will be important. I am feeling good; I have worked as hard as I can since my finger surgery. I feel good with my body and felt good with my batting tonight. Hopefully I can get some more runs in the next warm-up game and carry that form through the tournament."

Chawla turns it around

Let's give Piyush Chawla his due: he spun the ball with control, stuck to a disciplined line, and firmly wrenched the match out of Australia's grasp. It was a match-winning performance in his first-ever one-dayer in India, when anything less would've have probably hurt his ambitions, especially given the raging debate that had erupted in the wake of his selection to the Indian World Cup squad. 

Though a performance like today's in a warm-up is not enough justification for his inclusion, Chawla at least showed visible signs that he has been working hard on getting his legbreak right. In the past he has struggled to spin the delivery Shane Warne built his legend on, and being just 22 then, Chawla was reluctant to admit his limitation. Having recently returned to the national team after a three-year hiatus, he appears to be steadily regaining lost ground. 

Chawla had watched Jason Krejza turn the ball big in the afternoon and when his turn came to bowl, Australia were a comfortable 72 for 1. Shane Watson and Tim Paine had taken advantage of the hard ball and the absence of swing in the first ten overs to give Australia a confident start. Chawla's first ball slipped down the leg side for five wides. The dew, perhaps. He rubbed his palms dry and started afresh. The legbreak came out nicely, but Paine safely left it alone. He worked on that delivery for the next four overs, keeping Ricky Ponting busy without ever giving him width. 

With a small target to defend, Dhoni knew he had no option but to attack, and that pressure could only be built through the various spinners at his disposal. Along with Chawla, the trio of R Aswhin, Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh tied down the Australians with smart variations. The batsmen were kept hungry with barely a bad ball on offer. 

Chawla found his voice immediately in his second spell. The reputation of Michael Clarke as one of the better players of spin had already taken a beating when the Australian vice-captain failed badly during the Test series in India last year. Chawla was aware of Clarke's tendency to charge to kill the spin. So he pushed in a couple of sliders, then followed it with a fast-ish leg break. Clarke tried cutting with hard hands, only to play on.

Chawla's biggest victory though was to keep Ponting silent. "That is probably the best I've seen him bowl," Ponting said in praise of Chawla. "He spun the ball a bit more tonight. His control was pretty good. He along with the other spinners did a good job and some of our new batsmen found it difficult. You can see that from the low scores in the middle order as it was hard to start against that spin bowling tonight." 

The handsome crowd, who had started to fill in an hour before the match started, played the supporting act. Their roars enlivened the atmosphere. Chawla kept his emotions in check. Two perfect legbreaks with successive deliveries got the better of Cameron White and David Hussey. Desperate, Callum Fergusson tried to take on the lethal legbreak and was bitten. 

As Ponting admitted, it was a lesson for his batsmen to understand the conditions today. "It was an unusual one-day wicket. I don't remember the last wicket that spun that much. But you have to find a way sometimes to combat good spin bowling in tough conditions like today." 

In contrast, Dhoni was a happy man, saying he was confident Chawla would perform even if he had gone wicketless on his return to international cricket in the final match of the ODI series in South Africa in January. "His first game after returning to play for the country was under pressure, which is quite acceptable," Dhoni said. "[Today], it was a wicket which was turning a bit and he made the batsmen really think hard about the variations that he has got." 

Dhoni agreed it was a tough wicket to bat on, but felt the Australians succumbed to pressure and that was the turning point. "Initially, when the fast bowlers were on the ball was coming on nicely but once we got couple of wickets in the middle, the ball was spinning. And once you are under pressure and you want to win the game desperately the pressure keeps mounting . It may have happened with the Australian side."

At the same time he pointed out that such a turner would be hard to find during the World Cup. "This is a sort wicket to be provided in Test matches, where the ball took spin after two hours," Dhoni said. Yet, Chawla, for one, would not mind such a pitch.

'Sri Lanka will play seven batsmen' - Bayliss

Trevor Bayliss, the Sri Lanka coach, has given some insight into the XI his side will field during the World Cup, saying they would stick to a combination of seven batsmen and four bowlers, since it has served them well in home games. Sri Lanka experimented with playing six batsmen and five bowlers on their 2010 tour of Australia, with allrounders Angelo Mathews and Thisara Perera batting at Nos. 6 and 7, but reverted to a seven-four formula for the home series against West Indies. 

"We've got eight batters [in the 15-man squad] and in the last two or three years we've played a seven-four combination with (Angelo) Mathews in the top six being a bowler as well," Bayliss, who will quit the Sri Lanka job after the World Cup, said. "I can't see it changing just at the moment. In Australia we played six-five but seven-four seems to be the way we play our best cricket in Sri Lanka." 

That means Thisara Perera may not find a place in the XI, since he has been a bit inconsistent with the bat, and may not make the cut as a seamer ahead of Nuwan Kulasekara and Dilhara Fernando. Bayliss, however, said Perera would play some part in the campaign. "Thisara Perera's been very impressive through the Asia Cup and the tri-series we played before Christmas, up in Dambulla, against India and New Zealand. Ever since then he is taking wickets. 

"He is a big fellow, very athletic in the field, got strong arms and as you know he can whack the ball out of the stadium. He is an important part of our squad and I am sure that at some stage during this World Cup he will find form." 

The other decision Sri Lanka have to make is which four bowlers to play. Lasith Malinga and Muttiah Muralitharan are the two sure starters, if they are fit, while Fernando and Kulasekara are the two other fast-bowling options with Rangana Herath and Ajantha Mendis the other two spinners in the fifteen.

Fernando took four wickets in Sri Lanka's 158-run win in the warm-up match against Netherlands, and while Bayliss was satisfied with his performance, he suggested he may only be used in a three-seamer attack. "Dilhara is a guy who cops a little bit of criticism but if he can bowl more like the way he did [in the warm-up match] more often I am sure that criticism will disappear. That's the type of bowling we want to see from him in this World Cup and if he does that and backs up Lasith Malinga and Nuwan Kulasekara then we'll be putting in very good bowling performances." 

In the home series against West Indies, Sri Lanka opted for two spinners, and Bayliss said Mendis and Herath would have to battle it out for the second spot. He explained Muralitharan's absence from the warm-up game by saying, "Murali is getting towards the end of his career and we want to make sure that he is mentally and physically fresh to play the game we want him to play." 

Sri Lanka are being touted as one of the favourites to win the World Cup, with their one possible weakness being the inexperience in the middle order, but Bayliss was quick to defend his batsmen. "The middle-order guys get a bit of a raw deal. They are asked to perform when the top order don't. You've got seven batters in the team and it is up to every one of those seven to do their job in the line-up and that includes the openers, the top order and the middle order."

South Africa face old rivals in warm up

There are only two survivors from that semi-final between South Africa and Australia at Edgbaston in 1999 in this World Cup. Only Jacques Kallis and Ricky Ponting have experienced the heartache and exhilaration that laid the foundation for an intense rivalry between the two countries in the 21st century. Most of the men in the present squads only had a small taste of the tough contest that plays out when these two teams meet, in the 2008-09 season. They'll be served another morsel in the warm-up match in Bangalore, and even though it's only for practice, the winners will take confidence out of beating their old foes. 

South Africa have more painful memories and will be particularly gleeful if they walk away with a victory, although coach Corrie van Zyl warned against reading too much into the match. "It's important for us to win in terms of getting ready for the 24th, which is when the real thing starts," he said. South Africa have another ten days before their World Cup campaign gets underway against West Indies in Delhi and are being careful not to get distracted before then. 

The outcome of tomorrow's match could be one such distraction, perhaps more so if South Africa win. Australia are by no means the invincible side they once were, and they don't have the same hold over South Africa that they once did, but the contest is still talked up. van Zyl is trying to get his team to think beyond that. "To think about those things in the past is unnecessary," he said. "This is a different side now." 

The biggest change for South Africa is that they have a more varied bowling attack than ever before, headlined by three frontline and two part-time spinners. Collectively, they took six wickets in the warm-up game against Zimbabwe, and after seeing the amount of turn the Bangalore pitch offered, they must be drooling at the sight of it. Australia lost 9 for 58 against India on Sunday, and their batsmen have plenty to ponder over before facing South Africa's spinners, all of whom are likely to play. 

"We want to give everyone an opportunity," van Zyl said, indicating South Africa may field all 15 players. It will be a helpful exercise for Dale Steyn, who got nothing out of the Chennai pitch and saw some Australian seamers succeed in Bangalore. Steyn bowled much slower than normal against Zimbabwe but there were no doubts over his fitness. "Dale brings a uniqueness to the bowling attack with his pace and swing and is obviously a very important player for us. We are looking to have a complete bowling attack and he is part of that." 

There was a fear that one of the prongs of that attack, Lonwabo Tsotsobe, may be out of action for a while after spraining his knee against Zimbabwe but he was running during training with no problems. "He has done work with the physio and practiced under guidance and we hope he will be ready for tomorrow," van Zyl said. 

The emphasis is on getting every member of the squad as prepared as possible and not on the overall outcome. With that in mind, the middle order is a concern because it did not have much time at the crease on Saturday. Although van Zyl would like to see the likes of JP Duminy, Colin Ingram and Johan Botha batting, he doesn't want it to come "because the top order did a bad job." Ideally he would like them to "get an opportunity at a later stage in the innings." 

The only other player whose preparation is under scrutiny is Jacques Kallis. He batted with sublime confidence on Saturday but did not bowl and is unlikely to do so on Tuesday. van Zyl hoped the step-by-step reintroduction will pay off and Kallis will peak during the tournament. "When he has had periods of rest, he always comes back so strongly, so we hope that will happen again. It's important that he is ready for the business end." 

That end of the tournament is not for another five weeks, and even though many will see Tuesday's match as a possible semi-final or final, it will be crucial for South Africa to remember that it isn't and concentrate on their method, not the result. A victory over Australia later in the tournament will be much sweeter.

Chigumbura ton lifts Zimbabwe to 244

Zimbabwe captain Elton Chigumbura led by example, rescuing his side from a precarious position before propelling them to a competitive one during an attacking century. He struck eight fours and three sixes in his unbeaten 103, which included an onslaught at the death following a measured initial approach that lent stability to Zimbabwe's wobbly innings. For Ireland, Trent Johnston was the pick of the bowlers, nipping out two early wickets in a phase that his side dominated before Chigumbura seized the initiative.

Johnson backs Australia's pace battery

Beware everyone: Mitchell Johnson believes the Australian pace battery, comprising Brett Lee, Shaun Tait and himself, have the potential to destroy opponents if the defending champions can couple their "aggression" with "smart" game-plans. "We just have to be smart about our bowling but I think we're still going to be aggressive," Johnson said on the eve Australia's first warm-up match against India on Sunday.

Johnson felt the ability of all the three tearaways to consistently cross the 90 mph-mark left the batsman with not much room for escape. "That's sort of the plan, isn't it?", Johnson quipped, asked if he liked the fact that batsmen did not get any respite with him coming in as first-change after the new ball pair of Lee and Tait. "We can all bowl at between 140 and 150 [kph]. Shaun and Brett can even bowl over that. No one really is too keen on facing anything like that. We'd be one of the only teams going around like that. So it'd be a bonus for us," Johnson said. 

As for a workable strategy, Johnson believes he and his fellow quicks would put to use the short ball consistently. "We look at trying to get the ball to reverse, trying to use our change-ups. We're still going to try and bowl short balls over here. We know that especially a lot of the Indian batsmen aren't too keen on it," Johnson said with a smile. 

Incidentally, the trio has played together only twice so far: in the 2007 CB Series against New Zealand and recently in the sixth match of the ODI series against England, in which the England made a record 334. Though Australia escaped to victory with four balls to spare (Johnson played his part with the bat after being promoted to No.4), a view was formed that the fast men were vulnerable to leaking runs if their aggression went wrong. 

Johnson did not buy that opinion at all. "We work pretty well together," he said. "Obviously there was a lot of talk about us leaking too many runs. [But] Brett Lee did an exceptional job through that one-day series as you saw. With that experience, I think it's going to help myself and Shaun through this tournament. It probably showed towards the end of the one-day series," Johnson said. 

On Thursday Ricky Ponting had said that Lee, who was the top wicket-taker against England, was better suited to play a defensive role while he wanted both Johnson and Tait to bowl as quick as possible. "Brett has been able to turn himself into a bit more of a defensive-minded bowler. He has changed his approach a bit more, probably a bit more nous. I've been really impressed with Brett since he's come back into the Australian team. In the six games he played back in Australia [against England] I think he was the pick of our bowlers in maybe all but one," Ponting said. 

But he wanted Tait to just go for the maximum clicks. "Shaun Tait, I just want to let him go, let him run in and bowl fast and take wickets," he said. "Johnson, at his best, he is a guy who doesn't go for a lot of runs and he takes wickets," Ponting said about Johnson before following with a rider: "'if he's not at his best, we know he can leak a few runs.'' 

Johnson had a miserable summer during the Ashes barring at Perth where he snared six first-innings wickets with unplayable swing bowling to help level the series. But then one swallow doesn't make the summer and Johnson was ineffective for the remainder of the Test series. He found some late form at the back-end of the seven-match ODI series with a tally of 6 wickets at 23 from four matches. 

Today Johnson partially acknowledged that he had endured more bad days than good, which was hurting him. "I've never felt too far away from being at my best but for me it just gets highlighted a lot more if I'm having a bad performance. I probably need to bring my performances closer together - have that sort of middle ground. At the moment it's either really good or not as good," he said. 

Yet there is some positive news for him. Though he is yet to play in Sri Lanka, in India and Bangladesh Johnson has 31 wickets at 23.97 in 18 matches. Lee's 24 wickets across the three World Cup hosting countries has come at 31.54 from 21 matches. So even if Lee remains the leader of the pack, Johnson can take confidence from those numbers and hope to find the middle ground.

Broad '100% fit' ahead of World Cup

On the eve of England's departure for the World Cup fast bowler Stuart Broad has declared himself 100% fit after recovering from an abdominal injury that has kept him out of action since the Adelaide Ashes Test in December. 

England's ODI fortunes have suffered in Broad's absence, as they slumped to a 6-1 defeat in a gruelling series against Australia. England are still feeling the affects of a lengthy winter's work with Eoin Morgan ruled out with a broken finger and Graeme Swann, Tim Bresnan, Ajmal Shahzad and Paul Collingwood all nursing injuries. 

Chris Tremlett will travel with the squad as a back-up seamer but news of Broad's recovery is a major boost for a side that hasn't passed the quarter-final stage of the World Cup since 1992.

"I'm 100% fit now and excited about the chances of playing in a World Cup," Broad told ESPNCricinfo. "It's been a while since I've been on a field. I've been in the gym and in the nets but I'm excited about that competitive edge you get on the pitch and excited about our chances as well." 

Until the side were derailed in Australia by series of lacklustre batting efforts England have had a good run in limited-overs cricket. They won the World Twenty20 in the Caribbean last year and have won five ODI series in a row - beating South Africa, Australia and Pakistan in an undefeated run that stretches back to a 6-1 loss to Australia, again, after the 2009 Ashes win. 

"We've been in really good ODI form over the past two years, this was our first series defeat since Australia 2009 so we know we're a talented ODI team it's important we get four or five injured players back on the park and we'll be almost at full strength." 

The key to England's limited-overs success has been Eoin Morgan, whose inventive and nerveless batting has underpinned a strong batting line-up. In games England have won he's averaged 59.66 compared to 24.90 when they lose. Broad admits that his absence is "a huge loss" but remains upbeat about their chances.

England's first task will be their warm-up match against Canada in Bangladesh on February 16 and Broad insists they will be ready for it. 

"We take every game seriously, we prepare properly and make sure there's no stone left unturned it's important for the group and even our warm-up games to make sure we hit the ground running because you can't just turn on a good performance you have to be good throughout."

Batting long is Sehwag's aim

As if Virender Sehwag's batting strike-rate of 102 over a decade in one-day cricket wasn't enough to frighten bowlers, he has now set his sights on batting long during the World Cup. During his astonishing double-century against Ajantha Mendis and Muttiah Muralitharan in the Galle Test in 2008, Sehwag carried his bat but he is yet to bat out the full quota of overs in one-dayers, something he hopes to achieve. 

"I think I never played 50 overs in one-day cricket, maximum I faced is 42-44 overs," a relaxed Sehwag said in Bangalore. "This time I'll try to bat 50 overs if I can. I have been trying for 10 years, I'm still trying." Emulating Sachin Tendulkar, who made the first and only double-century so far in the format when he played out 50 overs against South Africa last year, wasn't a target for Sehwag though. "Sachin has played 50 overs many times, not just once, but he could make 200 only once because it is not easy to make 200 in a one-dayer." 

Nearly a third of Sehwag's innings have been single-digit efforts, a proportion he aims to reduce with a more measured approach early in the innings. "I have Yuvraj [Singh], MS Dhoni, [Suresh] Raina, [Virat] Kohli and Yusuf [Pathan] in the middle order, so I can go after the bowling straight from the first ball, but nowadays I'm a giving a little bit of respect for first 4-5 overs," he said. "Then I can take on the bowlers to make sure I give a good start so even if I get out the middle order can take their time and then go after the bowling."

This will be the first World Cup since Twenty20 become a big-money phenomenon, and Sehwag says the rise of cricket's newest format will mean teams batting first will have to set bigger targets to feel safe. "If you get a good batting track, 320 or 300 will be a par score in the World Cup," he said. "IPL changed a lot of batsmen's mindsets, because batsmen now think we can chase 10 run an over anytime. Before teams thought you have lost the game if they needed to chase 10 an over, but now with the power-hitters in the team, they will chase it and that will be very exciting to see in the World Cup" 

Injuries and the team management's decision to rest him from some recent series has meant Sehwag goes into the World Cup not having played a one-dayer in more than five months. He missed the recent series against South Africa due to a shoulder problem, and though he is satisfied with his recovery, he is yet to start bowling. "I'm taking regular treatment, so hopefully it will be fine when the match comes," he said. "I don't want to bowl in the nets and get injured again, so when I feel my shoulder is better I can start bowling." 

Shoulder trouble ruled Sehwag out of the past three global ICC tournaments - the Champions Trophy in 2009, and the previous two World Twenty20s - and India have had early exits in each of those, despite entering as title contenders. This World Cup, too, India are one of the front-runners. What lessons has the team learnt from past failures? "The only thing we learnt is that we are not favourites."

Dhoni plays down World Cup hype

The weight of expectation on the Indian cricket team, heavy at the best of times, has risen exponentially with the World Cup being held at home and India among the favourites. MS Dhoni's response as captain, at his first official World Cup press conference on Thursday, was typical: he played with a straight bat, deflecting questions so that the pressure on the team doesn't rise further. 

The mantra was "focus on process and preparation" (and not results or other things like Gary Kirsten's exit as India coach), pressure isn't pressure anymore but responsibility, no opposition team was identified as a threat ("all teams are dangerous"), the Indian team had a good mix of experienced players ("who know how to handle pressure") and youngsters ("who can change the course of the game"). And, significantly, not winning the World Cup is not the end of the world. 

"A lot of hype is created around the World Cup but every series that the Indian team plays we have a lot of expectation," Dhoni said in Bangalore. "We are supposed to win the World Cup, the atmosphere was same in 2007, it won't be right to consider this as one of the final frontiers, it's one of the big tournaments, the team needs to do well, (but) it's always the process and preparation that will help us achieve success, not thinking about what's coming and how big the tournament is." 

Dhoni also sidestepped a question on the importance of the tournament for the one-day format. "I'm a big fan of fifty-over cricket. That doesn't mean I don't like Twenty20s or Tests. It's a big stage, big fan following and everybody is looking forward to it." 

What was Dhoni's view on the prolonged World Cup, stretching over 43 days when its football counterpart typically picks out a winner in a month? "It is very difficult to form a perfect schedule and format. A tournament schedule will be either too long or too short but I am quite happy with the schedule. It will give us time to recover from small niggles." 

India's first warm-up match is against Australia on Sunday, and it will be Ricky Ponting's first game in more than six weeks after being sidelined by a finger injury. Would India target him with short deliveries? "We'll see about the strategy later." 

Today at least there was no visible strategy during the first official training session except that Virat Kohli got special attention from Kirsten, initially during the fielding drills, and later during the throw-downs. Kohli, one of the most prolific Indian ODI batsmen in 2010, would keep his fingers crossed to make his World Cup debut though the return of Gautam Gambhir in the top order has made his position uncertain. But today, Kirsten worked hard on the youngster's technique, trying to make sure the bat-swing was coming down straight before the point of impact with the ball. 

It was not a simple day at work for Kohli , who earlier intently heard the pair of Kirsten and Dhoni explain to him the right body position while taking catches in close positions like slips. Both men laid emphasis on anticipation being the key. Whatever they said, Kohli underwent some anxious moments, dropping a couple of straightforward catches. But his seniors were patient and continued to correct his fielding stance.

In contrast to light-hearted practice on Wednesday, the Indians had a four-hour long rigorous training session with Kirsten and Dhoni supervising the batsmen while the pair of Eric Simons and Zaheer Khan taking care of the fast bowlers. Harbhajan Singh, after a short spell with the ball, enjoyed playing the axe-murderer alongside Dhoni, using the bat akin to golfers using their drivers. Nine days before the tournament opener against Bangladesh, the Indians appeared in the right frame of mind. 

Dhoni's play-it-safe strategy at a spruced-up Chinnaswamy Stadium ("the dressing room looks better, doesn't mean the dressing room wasn't good before") should keep the headlines sober as well. It will also ensure that, after entering the past three ICC events touted as title-winners before ending up well short, the Indian team aren't distracted from their challenge of living up to their billing as leading contenders this time around.