Holder likes new ICC World Cup format

LONDON (CMC):

Captain Jason Holder says the new World Cup format means teams will have to work harder to win the competition, but says the Windies have fully embraced the changes and believes their chances are as good as any other side.

For the first time in nearly three decades, each of the 10 teams will play each other in a round-robin preliminary round format, with the four top teams qualifying for the semi-finals.

"You only had five or six games previously, with a few more if you made the knockout stages so it's exciting to play every other team this time," Holder said at an ICC event here yesterday.

LEVEL PLAYING FIELD

"You'll have to work hard to win the World Cup by playing every other team - it's the top 10 in the world, but you want to play all the other nine to give yourself a chance.

"We're taking it one game at a time - it's a pretty level playing field and cricket is a game played on the day. Everyone is up to the task and knows what standard the competition is, so it comes down to who plays better on the day."

The Windies are currently in a camp in Southampton and travel to Bristol shortly where they take on South Africa on Sunday in their first official warm-up match before clashing with New Zealand at the same venue two day later.

The Caribbean side have stern tests in their two opening encounters when they face Pakistan in their first match next week Friday in Nottingham before clashing with world champions Australia on June 6 at the same venue.