Italian skipper Joe Scuderi believes his side will face most competition from Hong Kong as it prepares to play in the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 4.

The two sides are part of the six-team event, which will take place in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania between the 4-11 October.

'I think Hong Kong will be the toughest team to beat. They can be unpredictable but they do play good, aggressive cricket,' said 39-year-old Scuderi, who has played for South Australia and Lancashire.

'Playing aggressively can be a strength and it can be a weakness.'

Scuderi admits that competition will be wide open with all six teams in contention to gain one of the two qualifying spots that will take the teams through to Division 3 in January.

'You never really know how these tournaments are going to go as we haven't played all of the teams,' he said.

'We need to be consistent and maintain our high standards.

Italy stunned the Associate world when it defeated Netherlands in the ICC European Championships Division 1 earlier in the year and Scuderi admits that his team performed outstandingly in the event.

'Over the course of the tournament that was the best we've played. We have gained a couple of players which has helped us,' he said.

'It is a nice complement when the Scotland captain says that our two opening bowlers are the best he has faced in Associate cricket.'

While Italy will be one of the favourites to progress, Scuderi doesn't want his team to look ahead to far in its bid to reach the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011.

'We need to take every step as it comes, even though it sounds a cliché, and do as well as we can,' he said.

'I'm guessing it will be drier and brand new to us all. It will be a real eye opener. They have moved forward very well. They have good players but when they beat us we only had four or five national team regulars in our side in the two matches.

'They have picked up Ryan Driver, who wasn't qualified for that game, and done all the right things.

'I think Hong Kong will be the toughest team to beat. They can be unpredictable but they do play good, aggressive cricket. Playing aggressively can be a strength and it can be a weakness. We need to take every step as it comes, even though it sounds a cliché, and do as well as we can.'