THE WEST INDIES SELECTORS appear to have done a decent job in choosing the 15 players for the World Cup.

For once they seem to have pleased John Public right across the region and that's never an easy job to do when there are over five million experts waiting to pounce on any bad choices made by the selectors.

I have heard some questions asked about St Lucian Darren Sammy but in the end the pundits felt he was just a bit unlucky this time around. Some surmised that he got injured at the wrong time when he was selected to tour India recently and he may have missed the chance to impress the selectors that he was truly worthy of selection.

There is the view, too, that he and Dwayne Smith were competing for that all-rounder's spot, and in the end, the coach in particular, may have thrown his weight behind the enigmatic Bajan especially on the grounds of his brilliant fielding which is second to none.

Of course, I don't think it will be lost on Smith that he has to produce more with the bat as he is seen first and foremost as a batting all-rounder.

I believe there might be too many people telling him how to bat.

Everybody wants him to do well, but I honestly believe that the only voice he needs to hear and follow right now is the voice within.

Strengths and weaknesses

He must be himself and play accordingly. He has to know by now what his weaknesses are with the bat and only he can tackle them when he is in the middle. I think he remains a potential match winner anytime his game is on song.

It may have been a close call between Lendl Simmons and other middle order contenders like Runako Morton, Sylvester Joseph and Ryan Hinds who could also fill the all-rounder's role. Simmons, we gather, can keep wicket as well and he might be the foil for fellow Trinidadian Denesh Ramdin in the event of injury. Smith, too, is a handy glovesman if push comes to shove.

The other concern, and some might see it as major, is that we won't be able to depend on our fast bowlers to make any significant contribution to the scorecard especially if the team is in trouble.

I don't know if it's a case where our pacers aren't trying to improve their batting during net sessions, but I think the onus is on them to put in some extra work in this area because players with more than one hand are more than helpful in today's game.

Basically, it is time now to focus on the preparation of the team which will be aiming to become the first host country to win the World Cup. Our chances, I think, are as good as any.

The West Indies play their best cricket at home and all other teams will be wary of this. I don't feel that there can be any complacency on our part because West Indian supporters are expecting only the best from this team.

It will be vital amidst the mountain of expectation they will be required to climb.

In the lead-up to competition, the other teams have been more active than the West Indies and that would have formed a great part of the fine-tuning process. England are on a high after beating champions Australia in a recent triangular series that also involved New Zealand.

We would be foolish to think the Aussies will be easy to get over despite recent losses to England and New Zealand. It could only serve as a wake-up call for them.

India and South Africa also appear to be in fine form at the moment, but some will argue what counts is how they perform in the real tournament that matters.

The West Indies won the first two Cups in 1975 and 1979. After 28 years in the World Cup wilderness the burden of claiming it for the third time rests with 15 of the best players in the region. Performance, or the lack of it, will make us or break us. I remain eternally optimistic.