Former secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Jaywant Lele believes there is no place for speedster Javagal Srinath and spinner Anil Kumble in the World Cup squad.

"What has Srinath done for India?" Lele asked.

"He gets a few wickets randomly and then goes for 50 runs in his ten overs. He cannot bat or field. I am against picking anyone above 30 in this team unless it is Sachin Tendulkar."

"Srinath has bowled well against New Zealand, which is a third-class team. We should beat them without Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar."

Lele suggests that the Indian team have a fixed batting line-up. Justifying his choice of Ganguly for skipper, Lele said that the team needed a captain who could scream at and pull up players who fail to perform to their potential.

The former board secretary picked VVS Laxman as his seventh specialist batsman ahead of left-handed Dinesh Mongia because the Hyderabadi batsman is in good touch getting useful 20s and 30s.

Laxman is a fine and experienced batsman who will be very successful in South Africa, he said.

"He has not got out or struggled in the recent past. If it is a question of form then Sourav Ganguly -- who is in worse form -- should be dropped before anyone else," he said.

Among the spinners, Lele would prefer Harbhajan Singh and Murali Kartik ahead of Anil Kumble.

Lele rubbished the theory that Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar and Yuvraj Singh, all of whom can also bowl spin, could make up for the lack of specialist spinners.

"We should stop depending on such part-time spinners. Kartik is unlucky because Indian batsmen play left-arm spinners very well. He is a brilliant bowler and a very good fielder. He also bats very well, like he did opening for the Railways team this season."

Lele prefers Vijay Dahiya over Parthiv Patel for the keeper's position. "He is not a bad keeper and is a good batsman too. He has done well whenever he got a chance to play."

According to Lele, there are only two teams that can beat Australia in this World Cup -- India and West Indies.

"India is the best but also the most inconsistent team in the world. On any day, we can beat the Australian or any World XI side. On another day, we can even lose to Zimbabwe or Kenya."

India, he said, would easily reach the semi-final stage of the tournament.

Lele dismissed Pakistan as an overrated team and predicts that hosts South Africa will not win the cup.

"I would put my money on the West Indies to win the World Cup. People are writing off the West Indies, but it is the team to watch for in South Africa."

"Their fast bowlers Corey Colleymore, Vasbert Drakes (who has played for years in South Africa), Jermaine Lawson and Mervyn Dillon will worry the best batsmen in South Africa. Along with skipper Carl Hooper as the fifth bowler, they will be a threat."

Jaywant Lele's World Cup 15:

1. Sourav Ganguly (captain)
2. Rahul Dravid
3. Sachin Tendulkar
4. Virender Sehwag
5. Rakesh Patel
6. Mohammed Kaif
7. Yuvraj Singh
8. Sanjay Bangar
9. Ajit Agarkar
10. Harbhajan Singh
11.VVS Laxman
12. Zaheer Khan
13. Ashish Nehra
14. Vijay Dahiya
15. Murali Kartik