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AUSTRALIA'S decision to draft Tom Moody, Worcestershire's captain, into their final World Cup squad, announced yesterday, is a courageous gamble which should pay off.

Moody - who led Western Australia to the Sheffield Shield this week - was amazed at his call-up, but nobody in Australia's party is wiser to English county conditions after eight seasons on the circuit. The 33-year-old was not named in the original short list of 19.

The recall of Paul Reiffel, an experienced seam bowler in English club cricket over the past decade, suggests Australia see their bowling as insecure. The Victorian has also leapt in from outside the initial 19, edging out Jason Gillespie.

Stuart Law has failed to make the final 15, leaving him free for another full summer at Essex. Two other strong candidates omitted are Greg Blewett, Yorkshire's overseas signing, and Michael Slater, awaiting his second season at Derbyshire.

Though Moody's international one-day record over 58 matches is moderate, he has proved himself as an all-rounder season after season at state and county level. His captaincy in England has not matched his success in Australia, though it could be said that lifting a mediocre Worcestershire side to respectability has been a worthy achievement in itself.

Trevor Hohns, Australia's chairman of selectors, said Moody had been omitted from the original squad because of an injury suffered at the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur last September. ``Since then his form with the bat and ball has been outstanding, and he's got extensive experience of the conditions in England,'' Hohns said.

Moody said: ``I thought my chances were very slim, but I was hopeful my fitness and form in the last few weeks might help.''

Reiffel, 32, thought that his international career was over after injury problems during the Australian season. He said: ``I've been trying really hard to get back into the Australian team, and bit by bit it has sort of fallen away and this was my last chance.'' He last played for Australia in a Test in India a year ago.

The Australia squad will play seven one-day internationals on the West Indies tour next month before travelling to England.

Australia begin their World Cup group fixtures at Moody's Worcester headquarters, against Scotland on May 16. Their remaining group matches are at Cardiff, Leeds, Chester-le-Street and Manchester.

Kent confirmed yesterday that Andrew Symonds, 23, would be their overseas player this summer.

The Queenslander made a bristling entry into county cricket with one season at Gloucestershire four years ago, scoring more than 2,500 runs in first-class matches. Dual-qualified, he was picked for the England A tour that winter before he opted for Australia.

John Wright, Kent's coach, said: ``From our point of view we were looking for a player with a competitive attitude, season-long availability and all-round ability. We are looking forward to him making an outstanding contribution this season.''

Symonds's presence will raise the number of Australians playing county cricket this summer to 12, reflecting the nation's extraordinary strength in depth.

Warwickshire batsman Dominic Ostler has flown home from his county's pre-season tour of South Africa with a suspected broken ankle.

Australia Squad (for World Cup): *S R Waugh, -A C Gilchrist, M E Waugh, T Moody, D S Lehmann, R T Ponting, D R Martyn, M G Bevan, S Lee, S K Warne, A C Dale, B P Julian, P R Reiffel, D W Fleming, G D McGrath,

Overseas Contracts.-Derbyshire: Michael Slater. Durham: David Boon. Essex: Stuart Law. Glamorgan: Jacques Kallis. Gloucestershire: Ian Harvey. Hampshire: Nixon McLean. Kent: Andrew Symonds. Lancashire: Muttiah Muralitharan. Leicestershire: Mike Kasprowicz. Middlesex: Justin Langer. Northamptonshire: Matthew Hayden. Nottinghamshire: Vasbert Drakes. Somerset: Jamie Cox. Surrey: Saqlain Mushtaq. Sussex: Michael Di Venuto. Warwickshire: Allan Donald. Worcestershire: Tom Moody. Yorkshire: Greg Blewett.