Victory in first game more important - Moody

Chris Dhambarage

CRICKET: Sri Lanka coach Tom Moody said that each and every match will carry a great amount of significance in his teams attempt to win the ninth ICC World Cup in the West Indies which gets under way on March 13.

The former Australian spinner who recently visited all the venues in the Caribbean said that most of the grounds in the West Indies have been refurbished and upgraded and it is difficult to analyze the nature of the wickets.

In fact there are twelve stadiums being used for this years World Cup with over 200 million dollars being spent on either building brand new grounds or renovating existing venues.

The Sri Lanka coach said that the outfield too will be very large with a distance of more than seventy yards and with a seating capacity of just over 20,000 plus with the wicket bound to be easy paced and with some variable bounce.

Four match venues are used for the warm-up matches. While five are hosting official six matches, two others - the Beausejour Cricket Ground in St. Lucia and Sabina Park in Jamaica - will stage seven matches including the semifinals, and Kensington Oval in Barbados will also be the venue for seven matches that also include the final on April 28.

The fifteen member Sri Lankan squad led by Mahela Jayawardena will leave for the West Indies on Wednesday and will play two warm up matches ahead of their opening fixture against Bermuda on March 15 at Port of Spain in Trinidad.

The official warm up programme will be conducted from March 5 to 9 before the tournament officially opens on March 11 at the Trelawny Multi Purpose Stadium in Jamaica.

Coach Tom Moody said that the venue in Port of Spain have predominantly helped the teams from the sub continent and his side will not have much difficulties in clearing the first phase of the competition.

In fact the Queen's Park Oval was the venue for England's spectacular demise for 46 in 1994, and also for India's remarkable run chase in 1976 where they scored a then record 403 in the fourth innings to win a Test.

In addition this ground is one of the oldest grounds in the Caribbean, and it is the home of the Queen's Park Cricket Club, whose most famous son is Brian Lara.

The Port of Spain which is also known as the Oval has hosted more international matches (50 Tests and 54 One-day Internationals) than any other ground in the region.

The ground has been steadily improved over the years with the construction of a number of grandstands, and the latest upgrade sees the pavilion also being refurbished to offer increased accommodation to players.

Even then the Sri Lankan coach Tom Moody said that it is important for his team to win the first match of the tournament even though they will be up against the minnows Bermuda who will be making their first appearance in an ICC cricket World Cup.

"We need to win the first match and then concentrate on the second game which will be against Bangladesh. We will be carrying all these points into the next stage and the team need to be highly focused whether we are playing a weak team or a top side".

Moody said that his team's prime intention is to enter the Super Eight stage of the tournament and from there onwards anything is possible where the performance on that particular day will decide the outcome of the match.

Sri Lanka's second match will be against Bangladesh on March 21 at the Queen's Park Oval and will take on India in the final league match on March 23 at the same venue. Before that they will also play two warm up matches against Scotland on March 5 and against New Zealand on March 9 with both games scheduled in Barbados.

The Cave Hill in Barbados has been the focal point of a massive expansion project and it has one of the few indoor net facilities in the Caribbean and the upgrade for the World Cup has also seen the construction of a new two storey pavilion and the installation of international quality floodlights.

The Sri Lanka team for the ICC World Cup

NAME			AGE	CLUB		ODI

Mahela Jayawardena (cap)	29	SSC		235
Kumar Sangakkara	29	NCC		188
Sanath Jayasuriya		37	Bloomfield	378
Upul Tharanga		21	NCC		43
Marvan Atapattu		36	SSC		267
Russel Arnold		33	NCC		168
Tillekeratne Dilshan	30	Bloomfield	108
Chamara Silva		27	Sebastianites	16
Malinga Bandara		27	Ragama CC	21
Farveez Maharoof		22	Bloomfield	59
Lasith Malinga		23	NCC		28
Dilhara Fernando		27	SSC		106
Nuwan Kulasekera	24	Colts		18
Muttiah Muralitharan	34	Tamil Union	287
Chaminda Vaas		33	Colts		290 

Officials: Michael Tissera (Manager), Tom Moody (Coach), Trevor Penney (Assistant Coach), Tommy Simsek (Physiotherapist), C. J. Clark (Trainer), Nalin De Alwis (Computer Analyst).

Sri Lanka's World Cup itinerary: 15 March Sri Lanka v Bermuda at Trinidad, 21 March Sri Lanka v Bangladesh at Trinidad, 23 March Sri Lanka v India at Trinidad.