Japan's quest to recapture the title at next March's World Baseball Classic will begin against Cuba at Tokyo Dome.

Two-time WBC champion Japan will face the baseball powerhouse from the Caribbean on the first day of the March 7-11 first round, then take on Australia and China on March 8 and 9, respectively.

Japan, which won the 2006 and 2009 WBC titles, is assigned to Pool B with the other aforementioned countries for the opening round. Gecheok Sky Dome in Seoul (Pool A), Marlins Park in Miami (Pool C), and Estadio Charros de Jalisco in Guadalajara (Pool D) are the other first-round sites.