While Bermuda's build-up to this World Cup has hardly been smooth sailing, the players have at least been spared the kind of political infighting which has all but torn Zimbabwe apart.

With several youngsters in the squad short on international experience, the side bears little or no resemblance to that which represented the Africans at the last World Cup, co-hosted by Zimbabwe and South Africa.

It was there that the troubles came to a head when, during the match against Namibia, Andy Flower and Henry Olonga wore black armbands to "mourn the death of democracy in Zimbabwe".

Olonga was booted off the squad, Flower and his brother Grant were soon to follow.

In the turmoil that ensued, all but one player was either forced or walked out. Batsman Stuart Matsikenyeri remains the only player with World Cup experience.

As such, those previously being groomed at youth level have earned rapid promotion to the senior ranks.

Yet, after being stripped of Test status by the ICC — a conditional return has been agreed for next November — Zimbabwe's new crop of players are slowly developing into a team who some believe could provide formidable opposition even for cricket's big guns.

And coach Kevin Curran, himself a former Zimbabwe international, senses they have more than a reasonable chance of reaching the World Cup's 'Super Eight'.

"Well, we've moulded pretty well in the last six months. It is a young side but there's no reason why we can't compete pretty well in this World Cup," said Curran following his team's training session at the Stubbs ground in St. Vincent yesterday morning.

"We've got Ireland in our first game, then Pakistan and West Indies. To stand any realistic chance of progressing we need to win two of the three to go through . . . so we'll be going for wins in all three.

"Obviously we know the strength of the West Indies and Pakistan but hopefully we can catch them on an off day and we can be at our best, and who knows, one-day cricket is a funny game."

Noting that his side contained few stars, Curran said they would be banking heavily on all of the players pulling their weight.

"Our batting has improved, that's an area we've been working pretty hard on. It's now probably one of our strengths and I'd like to think we can still improve on that. "But at the end of the day you've got to perform in all three departments to beat the top sides, so we'll have to be at our best to beat Pakistan and West Indies and even Ireland.

"We have no stars as such. We rely pretty much on an all-round team effort. We have guys who have performed well recently with the bat, but generally it will have to be a good all-round performance to get us some results."

At the end of last summer Zimbabwe twice inflicted defeat on Bermuda during a series in Trinidad, but Curran said going into today's match he considered those results irrelevant.

"Well, you know, we're treating every game the same . . . we had Australia yesterday, Bermuda tomorrow and then we go to the main tournament, and every game's important.

"We're not going to treat Bermuda lightly, we all know that on any given day any player can perform, so we'll be going out there to play the same way we played against Australia."

Curran's quiet confidence isn't echoed, however, by the Flower brothers who were both in Barbados recently to play for a World XI against the West Indies in a match to mark the reopening of Kensington Oval>

"Zimbabwe have been forced to field a team of kids and we have seen the results. It's not the players' fault but I don't see them doing very well in the World Cup out here," said Grant.

And Andy indicated neither he nor his brother would consider returninB>

"I walked away because of the state of affairs and not much has changed," he said. "Since then it has gone further downhill. I don't believe things will change unless the government changes, so that's the stage we are at."

When the brothers walked out they were disenchanted with government policies and how the national cricket body — led by Peter Chingoka — was rife with "financial mismanagement, bias and infighting." Dozens of their former team-mates have also cut short their international caree

Chingoka reportedly tried in vain to attract former players back into the squad for the World Cup but got little supp.

Thirty-six year-old Grant, two years younger than his brother, called for a change of administration in the African nation. Otherwise, he said, the game woulde.

"As Andy said, a lot needs to be done to save the game of cricket in Zimbabwe. We would love to help, but we can't work under the present bos.".