'I feel proud to be leading this team' - Tikolo

Veteran Steve Tikolo is proud to be leading Kenya and takes inspiration from the enthusiasm of his side as they head into another World Cup with the minnows tag handing over them. Tikolo, who recently criticised the lack of exposure and matches Associate cricket is afforded, said he had full belief in Kenya's abilities and believed his role as veteran was a boon to younger players in his side.

"The other players look up to me in a big way. They know I've been there, a veteran," he told the Jamaica Gleaner. ""I've gained a lot of experience; I've played 91 one-dayers. This is my fourth World Cup and also the performances speak for themselves. In Kenya, there is a lot of respect in that area. I just wake up every day and looking at the guys, the enthusiasm in the team. I feel proud to be leading this team."

Kenya pulled off a massive surprise at the 2003 World Cup, beating Sri Lanka en route to the semi-finals, but since then their game has deteriorated. Tikolo, 35, has watched the groundwork dissipate yet remained positive. "Our aim is to play each game as it comes, try to be as competitive as we can. We have been doing the little things right. We just had a tournament in Nairobi where we won the World Cricket League which involved the associate countries so we have momentum coming into this tournament. But again, I think it's not going to be easy so we mustn't lie to ourselves. Most of the teams will be coming to beat Kenya because they know what we did in the 2003 World Cup."

Kenya's warm-up games included a 21-run loss to West Indies and a nine-run win over the Netherlands. They begin their campaign with a Group C match against Canada in St. Lucia, a clash that Tikolo, 35, aimed at winning. "We'll be looking to try and win against Canada and then get a win against one of the two Test-playing countries," he said. "In this game anything and everything is possible. The guys are positive. In one-day cricket it might take one ball for the game to turn around so we are always positive when we go out and we know we can achieve the feat we did in 2003."

Tikolo also admitted a little about his heroes: "Growing up, I used to watch [Sir Viv] Richards, he's always been my role model. Learning from the way he played, he's always been a great inspiration to me and obviously some of the current players like Brian Lara, Sachin Tendulkar, but all in all, my family has always been behind me and they've supported me all the way."