Wonderful World Cup / Editor / 21 February 2011 /

Betting.Betfair's World Cup columnist Ryan ten doeschate reports from the Dutch camp as they prepare to meet England and explains why the smaller teams have a duty to perform at the World Cup.

It's frightening to think how quickly time as passed since we qualified for the World Cup two years ago in South Africa. But the tournament is well under way and today we finish our final preperations for our opening match against England at Nagpur.

The first two days have seen 'the minnows' dealt severe hidings by some of their bigger opponents and this puts extra pressure on our first outing. We've had a good build up to tomorrow's match. I unfortunately missed the Dubai leg of the prep tour but it was easy to see that the team had been well-drilled when I met up with them in Colombo last week. We bowled badly on our first outing in sub continent conditions and Sri Lanka got far too many runs. The defeat did throw up a few key lessons and our victory against Kenya suggested that we had learned from the experience.

I think we've progressed immensely as a group since the World Cup in 2007 and there's a genuine will to play some brave cricket against the world's best teams. The debate about the Associate Members participation rages on and while things look set to change for the next World Cup we certainly want to use this opportunity to show that there is a case for having more teams involved. But in order for this to be possible us smaller teams need to offer some decent resistance to the 'big boys' and have a crack at beating them.

England have been impressive over the last 18 months and tomorrow promises to be a tough match for us. They have quality across the board now and, while I won't single any of the batters out, I believe that the way we play Broad and Anderson will determine
how we go on Tuesday. If we can safely negotiate the new ball I think we can look to build a respectable and even challenging total. Hopefully England are still fatigued from a tough Australian summer and we can catch them off guard.

Personally, I feel like I've improved a lot since 2007 and am seeing this as a chance to check that progress. If anything, I was slightly reserved at the last World Cup and possibly overawed by the big teams. My aim, which is also in line with the team's aim, is to be fearless in competing with the world's best. This is easier said than done and there will no doubt be some tricky times over the next four weeks. But if we can stick to this philosophy and play with enthusiasm and freedom I have no doubt we will have a memorable World Cup, and hopefully even a Test playing nation's scalp or two
to take away with us.

The buzz and excitement surrounding the World Cup is crazy here. It's difficult to put into words how much people love cricket in India. It is not easy to pick a winner for this World Cup but the expectation, excitement and support of the locals, coupled with India's knowledge of their home conditions gives them a slight edge over the other teams. The journey will no doubt colourful, noisy, and full of Indian passion. I can't wait to be a part of it.

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