Bermuda delay picking World Cup squad

Irvine Romaine hits out on his way to 101against Canada © Eddie Norfolk

Bermuda have delayed naming their squad for the World Cup, citing " a number of factors" leading to the board waiting until February 11, just before the ICC's deadline, to name the final 15.

The local media had been expecting the announcement, but instead they got a 19-man training squad, which will be reduced to 15 in January when Bermuda take part in the World Cricket League in Kenya.

The only thing that was confirmed was that Irving Romaine will captain the Bermuda team , replacing Clay Smith, who had been in charge since 2003 but whose tenure has been blighted by a string of injuries. "It's been an honour to captain my country and I cannot deny that it's something I enjoyed doing immensely," Smith said."But it's also an honour just to represent your country and from my perspective, I have always tried to put the interests of the team before my own. The selectors have made a decision which they feel is in the best interests of the team and I am happy to fulfill whatever role is required of me."

Bermuda have been under fire after some poor performances in 2006, and Gus Logie, the coach, did address one are of concern, the side's mental toughness. "One of the problems I have is we learn lessons and then we go back," he told the island's Royal Gazette. "That, for me, is most frustrating. Guys know 'if I have a late night then I might not perform as well as I want to'. Then why take the risk?

"That's where the professionalism comes in. Players understand more and more of what is required of them, but whether or not they are prepared to make that extra sacrifice comes down to the individuals. You must have the mind to win and the will to succeed."

Logie also stressed that nobody had been ruled in or out of consideration and that players could still "pick themselves" with their performances over the next few weeks. "Their own performances, their attitudes to what we are about and their own approaches, that's what is going to help them get into the squad. We are giving players help right now, getting people to talk to them about the psychological side of it and more individuals must take the opportunity to discuss things with people like that.

"There is a fear of failure, obviously, and I understand that in a small society like ours that people are always going to be in your face telling you different things and sometimes what people say to you affects you in different ways, negatively or positively. We need players to understand that they have to deal with that, that's part and parcel of the whole process of being a professional."