Buchanan already planning World Cup blueprint

John Buchanan, whose coaching contract expires in October, is confident of a renewal that will keep him in charge until after the World Cup. Buchanan, 52, told The Age discussions with Cricket Australia for a two-year deal were advanced and there were enough challenges to keep the world champions fresh after the Ashes tour.

The Australians have been in camp this week tentatively planning for the England Tests and one-day tournaments, but they have also focussed beyond the trip, which starts tomorrow. "We've specifically avoided concentrating too much on this series because it's a long tour," Buchanan told the paper. "There will be time when we get there to really put our minds and training to what we're going to do in England."

Buchanan said the side could still improve and use its skills more consistently, especially with its catching. "We can introduce some more tactics along the way that we've at least talked about and it's now a case of how we implement those," he said. "If myself or a player or the team believes that there aren't new challenges and there aren't things we can improve significantly in our games, then it's time to move on."

The World Cup is already on Buchanan's mind and he said he was hopeful of securing a place at the event following his discussions with Cricket Australia. "They've been good negotiations so far and I'm hopeful we'll reach a conclusion on that as soon as we can," he said. "With that in mind I've produced a blueprint for the World Cup 2007."