It will be somewhat of a full circle moment when defending champions England take on New Zealand in the opening clash of the 2023 ODI Cricket World Cup in Ahmedabad.
Four years back, England, under Eoin Morgan, had defied all odds to win their maiden ODI World Cup title, by the narrowest of margins, against a New Zealand side that had a never-say-die attitude till the very end.
However, come the World Cup in India in less than two weeks’ time, it’s time to start everything from scratch, and England couldn’t have asked for a better opposition than New Zealand to open their campaign.
The England team are on their way to India for the 2023 World Cup. pic.twitter.com/8AY6X0gk3T
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) September 28, 2023
This time, however, it will be a different kind of challenge for England in the Indian subcontinent. The likes of Harry Brook and Gus Atkinson are still relatively new to the ODI setup, and are yet to be tested on Indian pitches. The defending champions’ biggest boost ahead of the World Cup, though, was the return of all-rounder Ben Stokes, who came out of ODI retirement in August and has already played a couple of impressive knocks against the Kiwis in the recent ODI series.
Whether Jos Buttler and Co can go out there and defend the title remains to be seen, but it’s safe to say that England have stuck to their aggressive brand of cricket in ODIs.
Here’s all you need to know about England, from their recent form guide to their key player:
ICC ranking: 5
World Cup best performance: Champions (2019)
Strengths
England seem to have a settled core unit heading to the 2023 World Cup. Eoin Morgan, their World Cup-winning skipper, retired from international cricket last year, but Jos Buttler took over the limited overs captaincy after it and has done a pretty decent job of it.
England have Buttler, Adil Rashid, Moeen Ali and Liam Livingstone who have been playing together for a long time.
With the return of Stokes, England, on paper, seem to have a well-balanced side. Having said that, Stokes displayed his full potential with the bat during the third ODI against New Zealand recently, where he scored 182 off just 124 deliveries, which was also his highest score for England in the 50-over format.
That means, once Stokes gets going with the bat, it would make life difficult for opposition bowlers.
Weaknesses
Spin will play a pivotal role at the World Cup in India. And, that is one area where England are lacking at the moment.
Yes, they have Adil Rashid as a regular who has an immense experience in ODIs, but he doesn’t have a regular spinner who can partner him.
They do have all-rounders in Moeen Ali and Liam Livingstone who can bowl spin, but how effective they can be, should Adil Rashid endure an off-day, remains a concern.
Form might be on Moeen Ali’s side after having registered figures of 4/50 against New Zealand, but how effective can he be on Indian soil (one wicket in six ODIs in India) is something England need to worry about.
Afterall, what England needs is someone who can stand up as a lead spinner in Rashid’s absence, and should a situation like that arise, then Moeen Ali and Liam Livingstone will have their task cut out.
Another concern is Harry Brook’s form. Jason Roy’s fitness concern meant he had to make way for Harry Brook in England’s World Cup squad, but Brook is enduring a poor run of form since his knock of 80 against South Africa in January.
Since then, Brook has played just four ODIs and registered scores of 6, 25, 2 and 10. That’s not a good read if you’re battling expectations and pressure to perform.
Key player
Ben Stokes would undoubtedly play a crucial role in England’s 2023 World Cup campaign, just like he did in 2019.
BEN STOKES!
That’s it. That’s the caption. 😳 #ENGvNZ pic.twitter.com/T8xjw7T1jK
— FanCode (@FanCode) September 13, 2023
His decision to come out of ODI retirement might have been the best thing to have happened to England ahead of the World Cup. It’s like he never left, having initially retired from ODIs in July 2022, only to come back more than a year later.
Stokes adds balance and flexibility to the side. In his first ODI since returning, he scored a half-century against New Zealand and followed it up with a fine knock of 182 two matches later. That was like Stokes sending a warning to other teams, that he is still a force to be reckoned with.
Matches played/won/lost since 2019 World Cup
Matches played: 43; Won: 19; Lost: 16; No result: 8
Form guide (Last 10 matches, most recent first): NR, W, NR,L, W, W, W, W, W, L
Record in India since 2019 World Cup: Played: 3; Won 1; Lost 2
Major changes in the squad since 2019 WC: Eoin Morgan’s retirement from international cricket means Jos Buttler has taken over as England captain. There’s no Jason Roy, who was part of the 2019 World Cup, and instead Harry Brook features in the squad.
The current pace attack consists of Mark Wood, Gus Atkinson and Reece Topley, while the 2019 edition saw Jofra Archer leading the attack with Liam Plunkett and Wood.
Had it not been for an elbow injury, Archer would have found himself in the main England squad for the World Cup.
World Cup squad: Jos Buttler (captain), Moeen Ali, Gus Atkinson, Jonny Bairstow, Sam Curran, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes, Reece Topley, David Willey, Mark Wood, Chris Woakes.
Schedule
5 October: vs New Zealand in Ahmedabad
10 October: vs Bangladesh Dharamsala
15 October: vs Afghanistan in New Delhi
21 October: vs South Africa in Mumbai
26 October: vs Sri Lanka in Bengaluru
29 October: vs India in Lucknow
4 November: vs Australia in Ahmedabad
8 November: vs Netherlands in Pune
11 November: vs Pakistan in Kolkata
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