SYDNEY, Feb 1: Steve Waugh says the Australians face more difficulties in defending their title than his squad did when they won the last tournament in England.

Waugh, who captained the winning Australian lineup in 1999 and played on the winning squad in 1987, said the world champions were under pressure because they were expected to win.

“It’s going to be a tough World Cup as favourites,” he said. “It’s much harder to win a World Cup than people expect, especially with a knockout stage — if you have one bad day, you are out, so there’s now quite a bit of pressure on the guys.”

Despite playing 325 limited-overs internationals for Australia and being the incumbent Test captain, Waugh wasn’t considered for the World Cup squad.

“When you see the guys over there, you realize it’s happening and you’re not there, so it’s disappointing,” said Waugh, 37.

“... I would love to be there, (but) I’m not, so I’ve got to accept that.

“You’ve got to get on with things and I hope they do really well.”

Waugh is concentrating on playing for New South Wales in Australia’s domestic competition and is yet to decide if he’ll lead Australia on their next Test tour of the West Indies.—APP/AP