New Delhi: All set to play his maiden World Cup next month, left-arm seamer Ashish Nehra is hoping to make it a memorable one by scalping big guns like Adam Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden in South Africa.

"It is a great deal of excitement to play in the World Cup. I have not set any personal targets for myself, and will try and get a few big wickets like Gilchrist and Hayden," Nehra told on Friday.

Considering his performance on India's previous visit to South Africa, that may be a tall ask for the left-arm seamer.

The 2001 tour when India played three Tests and a tri-nation One-day series, which was otherwise famous for the Mike Denness affair, was tough one for Nehra as well as his new ball partner Zaheer Khan. In fact, both the bowlers were dropped from the Indian team for the subsequent home series against England.

"'Haan, pichla tour kharab tha' (yes, the previous tour was a bad one). I am hoping the World Cup will be a good one. The team has done well the whole year, and we are all looking forward to doing well in South Africa this time," Nehra said.

Nehra's words very much echo the sentiments of Indian captain Saurav Ganguly and the team in general after the disastrous tour of New Zealand. The debacle down under has left the whole team shaken but the players are determined to bounce back.

"It was a wake-up call but also personally a very good learning experience. You don't get those type of wickets any where in the world not even in South Africa," said the seamer who has 30 wickets from as many matches at an average of 38.63.

Since coming back into the national team for the West Indies tour last year, Nehra has been with the team throughout the year. For a player who had been frequently laid down by injury problems in the past, it has been an achievement.

"All credit should go to the trainer Adrian le Roux. He has had a great influence on me; my fitness had gone up lot in the last one year.

"Previously I used to play two-three months and then would brake down. But now I have been with the team for one whole year and I have not missed a match," Nehra said.

Nehra is also determined to let not comparisons with Zaheer Khan affect his thinking.

"We are both left-arm bowlers and that's an asset to any team. Media writes what it wants but I know I am bowling well and I want to keep continuing my good work," Nehra said.

Extras:
Morale of team quite high, claims Harbhajan Singh
Agarkar at best a directionless weather cock: Sidhu