Biggest and richest ever Cricket World Cup

Trelawny, Mar 11 (UNI) As the biggest and richest ever cricket World Cup gets underway today with a breathtaking opening ceremony, it will mark the coming of age of International Cricket Council (ICC).

No previous editions of the World Cup have been as big as the ninth edition will be, not just in terms of teams but also in terms of geographical spread and the number of host nations -- which is a staggering 10.

To rake up the question that this is probably the most open World Cup to date is to state the obvious. Any one of the eight teams expected to go through to the Super Eight -- Australia, South Africa, India, Pakistan, New Zealand, England, Sri Lanka and the West Indies -- are capable of winning the coveted trophy.

As India skipper Rahul Dravid put it, ''You will see three or four teams open up a gap on the others even midway through the Super Eight. I'm not so sure that this is a totally open World Cup.'' Despite their recent poor run, Australia start a the favourites.

They have the batting prowess and fielding strength to do extraordinary things, and Ricky Ponting already knows the heady feeling of picking up the World Cup as he did four years ago in South Africa. Their major worry is the inability to protect even big scores, and the absence of Brett Lee is a sore blow.

India must count at least one of a favoured three other than the Aussies and South Africa. Dravid's team is on a winning roll -- very different from the run-up to the 2003 World Cup that started with an embarrassing warm-up round defeats and more indifferent matches before they ignited that golden run of eight wins on the trot.

Indian squad here is an experienced one with as many as seven of them having played one World Cup or more. Among the newer lot, there is promise and grit in plenty, as best exemplified by the likes of Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Dinesh Karthik.

Perhaps, above all is the fact that Sachin Tendulkar is probably playing his fifth and last World Cup and to him it remains a dream to be part of the winning team. He went close -- very close -- in 2003 and going by whatever we have seen of him here, he will not want to be denied again.

The hunger, quite simply, is too strong and Tendulkar knows he is part of an effective, battle-hardened unit that has the capability of emerging as the champions.

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