Cricket World Cup: England team profile & player to watch

The inaugural one-day international in 1971 began with Geoffrey Boycott, not renowned as a pinch hitter, scoring eight runs off 37 balls and England have been struggling to get the hang of the format ever since.

Alastair Cook was sacked as ODI captain less than two months before the 2015 World Cup where England failed to reach the quarter-finals after a 15-run Pool A defeat to Bangladesh.

Their subsequent transformation under Eoin Morgan’s captaincy has been extraordinary and there can be no argument that they are worthy favourites to win their first World Cup.

Number one in the ICC’s ODI rankings and enjoying home advantage, Morgan’s men appear almost unbeatable on good batting wickets.

Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow have forged a remarkable partnership at the top of the order while Jos Buttler’s highlights package this year includes 150 off 77 balls against the West Indies and 110 not out from 55 deliveries against Pakistan.

Joe Root continues to accumulate runs in effortless fashion with Morgan, Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali all capable of matchwinning contributions with the bat.

Jofra Archer’s pace and death-bowling expertise sharpens up a settled England seam attack and leg-spinner Adil Rashid has developed into a master of his craft in ODIs.

England racked up 481-6 against Australia at Trent Bridge last June, breaking their own record for the highest one-day total, and they won nine of their ten ODIs against the Aussies in 2018 – something that would have been unthinkable just four years ago.

Still, there are questions for this brilliant England side to answer. Their ultra-aggressive approach can get them into trouble – they were 20-6 against South Africa in 2017, 27-4 and 114-8 against Australia a year later, and 66-5 against Ireland in May this year.

They travelled sweetly through the 2017 Champions Trophy on home soil, outclassing Bangladesh, New Zealand and Australia in the group stage, but lost to Pakistan in the semi-finals after crawling to 211 all out on a sluggish pitch in Cardiff.

England know they can overpower any opponents on a belting batting pitch but they may need to box clever at venues such as Old Trafford or Edgbaston, which host the semi-finals, if they are to complete a long-awaited World Cup triumph.

Player to watch
Jos Buttler
The wicketkeeper-batsman has been at the heart of England's success since the 2015 World Cup and his unbeaten 110 off 55 balls against Pakistan at the Rose Bowl in May was the latest in a series of extraordinary ODI innings.

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