'World Cup should be for the premium sides'

Former Australia opener Matthew Hayden has backed the ICC's proposal to exclude associate nations such as Ireland and Canada and make the World Cup a 10-team tournament from 2015. 

"I sympathise with the arguments but these competitions are about the world's finest and even though Ireland produced some outstanding cricket, which shows the support mechanisms for our developing nations are working, I still think the World Cup should be for the premium sides," Hayden said. 

In April the ICC voted to exclude associate nations from the World Cup in 2015 but president Sharad Pawar has since agreed to review the decision. 

A decision in this regard is expected at the ICC executive board meeting in Hong Kong later this month.

"I would like to see further changes to the World Cup because you do not want to disenfranchise a community. They need to be involved in the system that promotes and relegates. 

"If Ireland are sitting in the top eight, there is a system where sides have the chance to miss out. It's not a Test-ranking competition, it's a one-day competition. I support a 10-nation tournament," Hayden said.

Hayden, now a director of Cricket Australia and Queensland Cricket, won the World Cup as a player in 2003 and 2007.