South Africa win Vettori plaudits

Daniel Vettori gets his hands on the Champions Trophy - but admits his side face a tough task to win the tournament

New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori claims South Africa are favourites to win the Champions Trophy, insisting that the hosts will be difficult to beat in their own back yard.

The Proteas, who were yesterday dethroned as the world number one side as Australia opened up a 6-0 lead in the NatWest Series against England last night, get the two-week tournament under way on Tuesday when they face Sri Lanka in Pretoria.

New Zealand begin their campaign against Graeme Smith's side two days later, and Vettori knows his side face an uphill task to start with a win.

"There is no doubt that everybody will be focusing on the South Africans as they are the best side in the world," he said.

"They are playing brilliantly at the moment, have no obvious weaknesses in their squad and will be familiar with the conditions. It will all count in their favour."

Vettori added that Australia could never be counted out, especially after their rejuvenated performance against the English.

He continued: "The Aussies' performance in the one-day series against England was an obvious warning to the rest of us.

"If they win the series 7-0 or even 6-1, they will head to South Africa with heaps of confidence.

"They will always be strong, particularly after their bowlers started firing on all cylinders again."

Assessing his own side's chances, Vettori feels that the frail batting is a major concern, especially after the recent Compaq Cup in Sri Lanka, which saw them bowled out for 119 and 155 against the hosts and India respectively.

He added: "A lack of consistency in the batting is a worry and there may be a lack of competition for places.

"But the batsmen all boast pretty good statistics. Grant Elliott and Martin Guptill are averaging nearly 50 and Jesse Ryder, Ross Taylor and Brendon McCullum have had great seasons in the past.

"The team that steps up with partnerships is the one that will win the tournament. We have not being doing that lately, particularly in Sri Lanka."

England, who face Sri Lanka in their opening match in Johannesburg next Friday, are the final team in Group B, while Group A is made up of current champions Australia, India, Pakistan and West Indies.