India will head into the World Cup without having played a single ball of warm-ups, with their practice match against Netherlands washed out in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday. Their first warm-up match, against England in Guwahati on September 30, was also called off without a ball bowled, though the weather did allow the toss to take place.

Netherlands will also begin the World Cup proper having seen minimal warm-up action. Their game against Australia in Thiruvananthapuram was heavily rain-affected, with no result possible after Netherlands had bowled 23 overs and batted for 14.2 overs.

India travelled the length and breadth of the country for their warm-ups. After finishing their three-match ODI series against Australia in Rajkot in Gujarat, India’s westernmost state, they travelled to Guwahati in the northeast and then to Thiruvananthapuram near the southern tip of the peninsula. Having covered over 6000km over those two journeys, India will now undertake the short journey to Chennai where they face Australia in their tournament-opener on October 8.

Netherlands will start their campaign in Hyderabad, where they meet Pakistan on October 6.

Hosts India start the World Cup as favorites,  going into the tournament with a squad that covers most bases – though a right-hander-heavy top order and the No. 8 position remain concerns. They made one late change to their original squad, replacing the injured Axar Patel with Ravichandran  Ashwin, giving themselves an off-spin option in the process.

Netherlands made the 10 team World Cup on the basis of a spectacular display at the Qualifier in Zimbabwe, where they finished in the top two after stunning West Indies via the Super Over in a high-scoring thriller, and then chasing down 278 inside 44 overs to pip Scotland on net run rate.

(Cricinfo)