India have missing home advantage: SA Coach van Zyl

South Africa coach Corrie van Zyl felt India have lost World Cup home advantage due to the IPL, largely because of the experience of playing conditions that the world's top players have gained and their dealing with the strength of the most zealous crowds in the cricketing world.

"India has traditionally been a difficult place to tour but more recently teams have learnt to win in Indian and sub-continent conditions," he said.

"India in particular, where most of our preliminary matches will be played, is a wonderful place to play cricket as the people love the game and the support is phenomenal. Teams have learnt to embrace the atmosphere rather than be wary of it and we are looking forward to playing in these packed stadiums," he said.

"This is also the 1st major ICC event in the subcontinent since the IPL was launched. Players from around the world have now played lots of limited over cricket in India. This may reduce India's home ground advantage. Delhi, for example, is like a 2nd home to AB de Villiers."

South Africa will set up for the tournament with ODI series against Zimbabwe, Pakistan and India and van Zyl said he wants his wards to win those series and then carry that form into the World Cup 2011.

"We will prepare and uses the upcoming series that we have to play on the ICC calendar as preparation but at the same time not lose the focus on taking each series as a campaign on its own," he said.

The Protease first match will be against the West Indies, and van Zyl stressed the importance of getting off to a winning start.

"Playing the West Indies in Delhi means that we have to do our home work regarding the ground and its history and how this will affect our play against the West Indies. We obviously need to see how Delhi suits them and how we need to use our strengths to have the advantage in these conditions," he said.

Kapil Dev's 'mad' captaincy won us WC 1983: Srikkanth

Members of 1983 World Cup winning team never thought of even reaching the semifinals but it was their "mad" Captain Kapil Dev's inspirational leadership that guided them to the coveted trophy, said chief India selector Krish Srikkanth.

Srikkanth, one of the key members of the team that beat the mighty West Indies twice in 1983 World Cup including in the final, said many players had even booked flight tickets for the United States for holidaying after the tournament as they believed they would not go beyond the group stage.

"None of the players thought we would reach the semifinals. So, they booked flight tickets for the US. The plan was to watch the semifinal and the final and then fly to the States for a holiday. The tour agent said that even my wife can come as I married in March 1983. So my booking was for Bombay-London-New York," he said at a book launch function in the city yesterday.

"At that time we were minnows in ODIs. Before 1983, we had won only one match in a World Cup, against East Africa which was a team not heard of. So to be honest there was no hope of going beyond the group stage of the competition," said the former dashing opener.

Srikkanth said Kapil was somehow very serious and said his side can beat the mighty West Indies and his self-confidence rubbed off on to his team-mates.

"Somehow Kapil was very serious. He said we had beaten the West Indies once so we can beat them in our first group match at Old Trafford. He said 'Dil se khelo' we can do it," he stated.

"All the players said Kapil had gone mad. West Indies have Gordon Greenidge and Desmond Haynes as openers. After that they have Vivian Richards, Larry Gomes, Jeff Dujon and four fast bowlers whom I never wanted to face. But Kapil insisted at the pre-match meeting that we can beat them. That gave us the self-confidence that we wanted and we managed to defeat them in the group match and in the final," Srikkanth said.

"I can say that the group match victory against the West Indies was the turning point in India's ODI history. And I say there will never be another Kapil in this country and for that matter in the world," he declared.

Will play in 2011 World Cup if team wants: Muralitharan

All set to bid adieu to his Test career, Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan said if the team wants will play the 2011 cricket World Cup in the sub-continent.

Muralitharan has announced that he will leave from the longer version of the game after playing the 1st Test against India starting July 18 at Galle.

"I will be happy to see the younger players shape up and win the World Cup 2011 for Sri Lanka. But if the authorities think I should also be a part of the team, then I will play," the world's highest wicket taker said at a press conference.

Hitting back at his attackers, who questioned his bowling action, Muralitharan said it was easy to criticize anybody with a naked eye but bio-mechanics proved that his action was legal.

He also thanked Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa and World Cup winning skipper Arjuna Ranatunga for their support when his action repeatedly came under the scanner.

The batsmen worldwide have often feared facing him but when asked which batsmen he would find difficult to bowl at, Muralitharan named Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar.

"It is difficult. Overall I think I played lot of cricket against the West Indies during Lara's days. And also played a lot against Sachin Tendulkar. Like that you can name so many. But these two players are very special players in the world. And I think they have played me the best," Muralitharan said.

Muralitharan said his Test record of 792 wickets was not unbreakable.

Ashes no excuse for World Cup flop, says Strauss

England Skipper Andrew Strauss has insisted blaming a poor performance at next year's World Cup in Asia on the prior Ashes tour of Australia won't wash as an excuse for failure.

No England team has won the World Cup, cricket's leader one-day trophy and many pundits believe they are unlikely to break their duck so long as they continue to head to the tournament on the back of an Ashes tour of Australia, where they haven't won a Test series since 1986/87.

But Australia has won the last three World Cups(1999, 2003, 2007), all after Ashes series albeit they were home campaigns for the Aussies.

Strauss, speaking to reporters at Trent Bridge here on Wednesday, where the 1st one-day international between England and Bangladesh takes place on Thursday, said moaning about the schedule was a waste of time.

"It is what it is and it didn't stop Australia winning the last World Cup," Strauss said.

"There's no reason why you can't go from a busy Ashes series and then win the World Cup.

"What you want in that Ashes series is for you to win and be full of confidence and have that under your belt before you go to the World Cup; that would be the perfect way to go in to a World Cup."