Gough targets World Cup

Exclusive by Oliver Brett
BBC Sport

GOUGH'S ONE-DAY STATISTICS Debut: v New Zealand, Edgbaston, 1994 Matches: 121 Wickets: 188 Average: 24.96 Economy rate: 4.27 Best bowling: 5-44 (v Australia, Lord's, 1997)

Darren Gough has set his sights on opening the bowling for England at the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies.

Gough, now 32, told this website he was "very annoyed" to have been ignored for the tours of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

He expects England's one-day squad to continue evolving over the next four years but believes he still has plenty to offer.

"If you were to ask me now which of the current players would be there at the next World Cup I would say not half of them."

Speaking exclusively to the BBC Sport website, he added: "You cannot plan for four years ahead - it just doesn't happen like that.

"You'll get players who are not cutting it at this level and at some point the selectors have to ask themselves: 'Are they good enough or not?' "

For the time being, Gough will sit back and observe which bowlers perform in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

He said: "There are only three one-dayers in Bangladesh and three one-dayers in Sri Lanka.

My next real target is the ICC Champions Trophy in England next September Darren Gough

"To be honest, Bangladesh shouldn't even be a Test side and in Sri Lanka it's a chance for some of the younger guys to have a go.

"If it was a World Cup I would be in the side now."

He hopes to make England's tour of the West Indies in early 2004.

But even if he is passed over for the Caribbean tour, he still has one more serious chance to get back into the England reckoning.

"My next real target is the ICC Champions Trophy in England next September," said Gough. "Then I've got two more years to build to the next World Cup."

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The Yorkshire seam bowler is one of the most popular England players and made a successful comeback from long-term knee injury last summer.

Jonathan Agnew: Gough makes his point in one-sided final

In the successful NatWest Series campaign, he took nine wickets at an average of 22.6, boasting a superb economy rate of 3.63.

He seemed to have formed a highly-effective strike partnership with James Anderson.

His return to the Test arena, however, proved short-lived.

And Gough announced his retirement from five-day cricket in early August after coming in for heavy punishment from Graeme Smith and his fellow South Africans at Edgbaston and Lord's.