Cricket fans will be treated to a feast of matches from the forthcoming ICC World Cup, Bermuda Broadcasting Company announced yesterday.

A total of 26 `live' games will be beamed into homes across the Island on ZFB TV7 from this weekend, although if viewers want to see every ball of every match they will have to fork out an extra $125 for complete coverage.

That's because the `Super Six' elimination stage is being offered as an additional pay-per-view package as part of a hook-up with Bermuda CableVision. The package, available by subscribing directly with CableVision, will also include primetime rebroadcasts of the day's matches in full on Channel 76.

The semi-finals and finals, meanwhile, will revert to the BBC.

The World Cup will run for 44 days, from the opening ceremony in Cape Town this Saturday to the final in Johannesburg on Sunday March 23 and there will be a total of 54 matches, a record for the ICC Cricket World Cup.

"The vast majority of matches will be carried live from South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya," said a spokeswoman for the BBC. "All games will be day games, beginning at 4 a.m. Bermuda time, except in Cape Town and Durban where all games - five at each venue - will be day-night games beginning at 8.30 a.m. Bermuda time."

ZFB TV 7 will lead off with the opening ceremony this Saturday and the opening match on Sunday between South Africa and the West Indies.

"Between February 9 and March 4, ZFB TV 7 will carry the most anticipated matches early morning, all of which will be rebroadcast that same evening on Channel 76 pay-per-view," said the spokeswoman. "Pay per view will also offer early round matches live in the build-up to the Super Sixes between March 7 to 15, as well as evening replays on nearly all of the matches seen earlier that same day."