We have the right mix - Ponting

Ricky Ponting is confident Australia have the right blend of youth and experience to snatch a third successive World Cup. Despite losing the No. 1 ranking to South Africa last month, Ponting is unconcerned as his team prepares for its opening Group A match with Scotland in St Kitts on Wednesday.

"For some players it could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play in a World Cup," he said. "I've played in three World Cups, and this will be my fourth, and I know what it is like to play in and win a World Cup. At the same time, there are some younger guys in our squad and this is an opportunity for them to stamp themselves on the international game."

Ponting believes he has the right squad mix required to win a fourth World Cup to add to the triumphs in 1987, 1999 and 2003. "The last World Cup for me was one of the most satisfying periods of my career - going through a World Cup undefeated was fantastic," he said. "One of the things that you do have with World Cups, the way that they are set up now, is that you have quite a bit of time in between games to prepare exceptionally well for the opposition teams."

Australia have lost their past five one-day internationals but Ponting is confident they have improved on the deficient areas. "The thing that worried me the most was that there were 10 or 15 overs through the course of those games, where they slipped away from us," he said. "In this tournament, you cannot afford to not be playing your best cricket. There are some areas that we can tighten up, and the guys are confident."

Australia completed strong warm-up wins against Zimbabwe and England in St Vincent and they also expect to be strengthened by the return of Matthew Hayden for the game against Scotland. While claiming not to pay much attention to the No. 1 ranking, Ponting said it would be great to finish the tournament on top.

"We want to win every game that we play, and that's the way we train, and we prepare," he said. "If we are able to win a few more games in this World Cup, and South Africa does not, we will probably leapfrog them again."