Countdown on for evenly-matched, security-tight World Cup

SYDNEY: The countdown is on for the 11th Cricket World Cup and the likely winner is still guesswork a month out in one of the most evenly-matched and security-conscious tournaments staged.

Australia will share the hosting of next month´s cricket showpiece with New Zealand, 23 years after they co-hosted the event when Pakistan beat England in the final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Hosts Australia and defending champions India may be the top two ranked teams but any of a half-dozen sides could lift the trophy on March 29 at the MCG.

The Australians, under the aggressive coaching of Darren Lehmann, are gunning for their fifth World Cup, while India stopped the Aussies from winning a fourth straight title in the quarter-finals of the last tournament in India in 2011 and have winning recent ODI form.

There may be fitness doubts over skipper Michael Clarke, with an imposed deadline of February 21, but the Australians possess some of the biggest names in world cricket -- David Warner, Steve Smith, Brad Haddin and Mitchell Johnson.

It will be how the team handle the external pressures as the host nation that will decide their winning chances. The Australians didn´t cope in 1992 and they missed out on the semi-finals.

Sri Lanka, the 1996 champions, have by far the most experienced squad with Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and Tillakaratne Dilshan all playing more than 300 ODIs.

South Africa, who have come close but have yet to win the World Cup, are always a threat under the captaincy of AB de Villiers, while New Zealand and Pakistan have the firepower to cause problems in this format.

The jury is out on England´s chances after they stripped Alastair Cook of the captaincy less than two months out from the World Cup and installed Eoin Morgan in his place.

Australia´s rising pace star Josh Hazlewood believes the sub-continent teams will struggle with the bounce of the Australian wickets.

Joining the 10 Test-playing nations will be four associate countries -- Afghanistan, United Arab Emirates, Scotland and Ireland -- to add some unpredictability to the pool games.
Matches in Australia will be played in all the major cities -- Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Canberra and Hobart -- with many of the grounds upgraded and renovated in recent years. (AFP)