Andrew Strauss eyes ICC World Cup triumph

England skipper Andrew Strauss is upbeat about the prospects of his team in the upcoming ICC World Cup 2011, which will start on 19 February, 2011 in the Subcontinent.

Strauss while talking to the media reiterated his side’s resolve to lift their first-ever World Cup this year. They are in Bangladesh nowadays for their World Cup preparations.

Strauss, who will be leading England for the first time in the global event said, “Well, we are here to win it obviously, no doubt about that. I think we feel like we have got an excellent chance. But the way the tournament is structured means that any of
the eight sides that qualify for the quarter-finals are going to be in with a chance.”

The English skipper showed confidence in his team and believed that his side will have to deal with the pressure of playing against the power houses in the world of cricket during the knockout stages of the tournament.

“Then it’s a case of playing good cricket under pressure against the opponents. So the first step is to get through the group stages, play some good, consistent cricket during that group phase and then it’s about handling the pressure,” he added.

England do not have a good record in the World Cup as they failed to go beyond the group stages in the last three World Cups since 1999. However, Strauss feels that things are different this time and the English contingent has the ability to succeed in the
group stages.

Strauss admitted that England do not have a good record of playing competitive cricket in the Subcontinent, where they have been utterly disappointing. Nevertheless, the English skipper revealed that the team had come prepared this time and would give the
opponents a tough time in the mega event.   

England, the current Twenty20 champions, have played some competitive cricket in the three formats of international cricket (Test, ODI and Twenty20 cricket). The cricket team has recently seen an inclusion of some fine ODI players in their squad. The players
have improved the team’s ranking in the shorter formats of the game.

England, as they have shown in Twenty20 cricket, got some explosive players who have the ability to take the game away from the opposition at any time.

Also in Test cricket, England have shown their resurgence by beating Australia 3-1 on their soil after 24 years in the Ashes series. England not only won the Ashes but also managed to retain the Ashes. However, they were pulverised by the Aussies in a seven-match
One Day International series 6-1.

This embarrassing defeat will be in the English players’ minds once they come out to play in the mega event. Moreover, many cricket veterans believe, if they play according to the plan, there is no doubt that England will reach semi-finals.