'If I didn't believe, I'd have stayed home' - Tendulkar

Heading into his fifth, and likely final, World Cup, Sachin Tendulkar admits that the expectation of millions of Indians isn't as daunting as made out to be, and that if it was, he would have stayed home. "It's not just me, but the entire nation which dreams about this," he told reporters in Jamaica. "It's extremely important. We have tried our best in the past and we will continue to do that.

"If there has been no success in the recent past, it doesn't mean that we will never achieve it. If we lose hope, then we may as well be back in India. But we have hope and we have pride."

Tendulkar, one-day cricket's highest run-scorer (14, 783 from 381 games) missed India's tour to the West Indies last year, but believed they could do well in the World Cup. "I am looking forward to having a good World Cup. I am hoping that both my batting and bowling will come good," he said. "I am not under any pressure at this time I feel quite confident and I am ready to go."

Tendulkar was a highlight at the 2003 World Cup, hitting a record 673 runs as India rode on eight consecutive wins to reach the final against Australia.

Greg Chappell, India's coach, said the side had a good chance of clinching their second title but wouldn't let the pressure get to them. "We are one of a number of teams who have a good chance of doing well. We are quietly confident that we have the make-up to do well in the tournament and that's the important thing."

Rahul Dravid, the captain, believed India were one of the most balanced sides in the tournament. "We have a pretty good team and we are very confident. I know that all the other teams will be aiming to play their best cricket but we are very confident that this is going to be a very good tournament for us."

India play two warm-up matches at Jamaica, against the Netherlands and West Indies, on March 6 and 9, before heading to Trinidad where they face Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Bermuda in the first round of the World Cup.