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England cricket team is coming to play the 2023 World Cup as a defending champion as they won their first-ever title back in the 2019 edition of the World Cup under Eoin Morgan’s captaincy. After Morgan hung up his boots, wicketkeeper Jos Buttler was handed over the ODI captaincy mantle.
Under the leadership of Buttler, the English side clinched the 2022 T20 World Cup title in Australia. Now, he is eyeing another title to his belt as a skipper. England’s ODI stint has been exceptional and they are clearly one of the favourites to win the title. Just ahead of the mega event, let’s evaluate England’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.
S-Strengths:
Over the time, England’s opening combination has been a great asset for their side and this time the onus will be on both the opener batters Jonny Bairstow and Dawid Malan to provide a fierce start in the upcoming World Cup matches. Bairstow was the second-highest run scorer for England in the 2019 World Cup, collecting 532 runs in 11 matches at an average of 48.36. Malan on the other hand has been going through a brilliant form as the southpaw gathered 591 runs in nine one-day contests this year. Back during the three-match ODI series against New Zealand at home, England secured a 3-1 win, and Malan finished the tournament as the leading run-scorer in the series with 277 runs in three matches at a strike rate of 105.72.
W-Weaknesses:
The cause of concern for the English side is injury. Most of their players have been plagued by injuries ahead of the 2023 World Cup. England’s ace pacer Jofra Archer who was the third leading wicket taker with 20 wickets in the 2019 World Cup, has not been added to England’s 15-member 2023 World Cup squad due to his elbow injury. The premier opener Jason Roy also failed to feature in the home ODI series against New Zealand due to a back injury and as a result, he was snubbed from the World Cup team.
O-Opportunities:
Since the World Cup 2023 is slated to take place in India, cricketers are aware of batting-friendly conditions. Buttler and his blokes will be looking to exploit the batting conditions of Indian pitches. Keeping in mind the strong batting lineup of England, their batters can help the side defend their title. From the opening batting order to the lower order, they have got the likes of Buttler, Sam Curran, and Chris Woakes who can destroy any bowling line-up on their day.
T-Threats:
Going by the stats, England’s ODI record in India is below average. As of now, they have played 66 ODIs in the sub-continent where they won only 26 games and tested defeat in 39 matches. The major cause of concern for the English side is their sheer failure to counter spinners.
While playing against sub-continent teams such as India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan, English batters might witness a collapse as these teams have some quality spin bowlers.
England World Cup squad: Jos Buttler (c), Moeen Ali, Gus Atkinson, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Sam Curran, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Reece Topley, David Willey, Mark Wood, Chris Woakes.
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