Allan Border
The Border-Gavaskar trophy is held by former Indian player Sunil Gavaskar (R) and former Australian player Allan Border during the presentation cereomny after Australia won the four-test series against India 2-0 at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) January 10, 2015. REUTERS/David Gray REUTERS/David Gray

Former captain Allan Border has high hopes for the Australian cricket squad at the 2015 Cricket World Cup. Border believes that the squad has prepared enough for the tournament to not repeat the same mistakes when Australia suffered shocking early losses in the World Cup 23 years ago.

In an article by The Daily Telegraph, Border said that Australia’s groundwork ahead of the opening matches on Valentine’s Day has been inimitable. According to Border, the core of the squad has been together for quite a while now. He believes that it presents a strong foundation for the squad in their bid to win a fifth World Cup.

Border also said that the Australian team has had impressive performances last season. Border expects the joint hosts of the tournament to win. In 2014, Australia had a decisive win in One Day International, or ODI, series against Pakistan as well as a compelling victory against defending World Cup champions India and England in the tri-series.

“We have our combinations sorted and who will cover for who should anything go wrong, and I am sure this team will embrace playing at home where they will get 90 percent crowd support,” Border said. “I honestly believe that if we play anywhere near our best, we will be very, very hard to beat.”

Border is certain that the shocking early exit that Australia suffered during the 1992 World Cup will not happen again. Australia was also one of the hosts of the 1992 World Cup and definitely one of the favourites in the tournament, but they lost their first two matches. They bounced back to win four of the last six matches, but the wins weren't enough to book a place in the semifinals.

The question is: will Australia be able to cope with the weight of hosting a World Cup? Apparently, Australians can rely on Shane Watson, Sydney Morning Herald reports. SMH wrote that Watson can hit “big scores,” which makes him Australia’s most dangerous weapon.

Squad

Michael Clarke, George Bailey, Pat Cummins, Xavier Doherty, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, Brad Haddin, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Johnson, Mitch Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, David Warner, Shane Watson

Coach: Darren Lehmann

Australia Schedule

Feb. 14: Australia vs. England

Feb. 21: Australia vs. Bangladesh

Feb. 28: Australia vs. New Zealand

March 4: Australia vs. Afghanistan

March 8: Australia vs. Sri Lanka

March 14: Australia vs. Scotland

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