winning captain Imran Khan has said the “dew factor” will play a critical role in the outcome of matches at the World Cup. “Apart from the related strengths and weaknesses of the participating teams I think the dew factor in day and night matches will decide results,” Imran told Geo Super channel. “I think any team batting second will have a huge advantage as the ball keeps on getting wet, the outfield is wet and bowlers find it hard to grip the ball,” said Imran. The cricketer-turned politician pointed out that in March and April in day and night matches pitches tended to be flatter because of the warm weather. “And in these months I know by experience that the dew factor also becomes very important in the subcontinent,” he said. “In 1996, Sri Lanka won the final at Lahore because they chose to chase and ended up getting the advantage of heavy dew making life very difficult for the Australian bowlers.” The organizers have scheduled 36 of the 49 matches in the World Cup as day-night fixtures in the three host countries, India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The quarter-finals, semis and final are all day-night fixtures. Sehwag wants to bat 50 overs Hard-hitting Indian opener Virender Sehwag Friday sounded a warning to rival bowlers ahead of the World Cup, saying he planned to bat right through the innings. Sehwag, who opens the innings with batting superstar Sachin Tendulkar, is known for giving his team flying starts with his hard and clean hitting and has so far scored 7,380 runs in 228 one-dayers with 13 centuries. “I think I have never played 50 overs in one-day cricket. The maximum I have played is 43 or 44 overs,” said Sehwag, 32. “But this time, I will try to bat 50 overs and give a good start to the team. I have been unsuccessfully trying this for the past 10 years, but the effort is still on.” Sehwag said he was not feeling any pressure as his captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and coach Gary Kirsten had always backed him to play his natural game. “My role is to go out there and enjoy myself and give a good start to the team. If I score 20 runs in 10 balls or 100 in 70 or 80 balls, I am happy with that,” he said. India is in Group B with South Africa, England, the West Indies, Bangladesh, Ireland and the Netherlands, with the top four sides making it to the quarterfinals. Schools out for matches Educational institutions in Dhaka and main port of Chittagong will close during World Cup matches in the cities to help ease congestion around the venues, tournament officials said Friday. Bangladesh meet co-host India in the opening match of the tournament at the Shere Bangla National Stadium on Feb. 19, two days after the opening ceremony at the Bangabandhu National Stadium, also in Dhaka. Sri Lanka is the third co-host for the event. The decision to close the institutions was agreed at a meeting of the organizational committee attended by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, chief patron of the panel, late Thursday. The closure will not only enable students to watch the matches on television at home but also ease traffic pressure on the city streets, which are regularly clogged with vehicles. Mock security drill Security forces staged a mock emergency drill after a controlled blast at a stadium in the Bangladesh capital of Dhaka Thursday which will host the opening ceremony for the cricket World Cup on Feb. 17. Bangladesh meets India in the opening match two days later at the Shere Bangla National stadium. “The blast and the subsequent actions were parts of a security drill ahead of the World Cup,” Abdul Jalil, a senior officer in the Dhaka Metropolitan Police, told Reuters. Similar drills are being executed at hotels and other places where players and their fans are expected to gather during the tournament to be hosted jointly by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Six group matches and two quarterfinals will be played in Dhaka and Chittagong. Bangladesh has restricted visas for visitors from Afghanistan, Algeria, India and Pakistan to keep suspected militants from entering the country, foreign ministry officials said.
