England expects but South Africa's inside knowledge provides hope of upsetting the grand opening

Eoin Morgan's men kick-off their World Cup campaign against The Proteas at The Oval in the first of what the team hope will be the first of 11 games to glory

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Lewis Capaldi. Aladdin. Theresa May (just). The next six-and-a-half weeks will determine whether this trio will become obscure pub quiz answers for years to come or be lost to (relative) obscurity.

Eoin Morgan will be unperturbed by the prospect of any of the three retaining a position in consciousness of cricket and sports fans across England and Wales. But starting on Thursday he can ensure they belong in the time-capsule of the sport's finest hour.

There has arguably never been a global tournament in which a team representing England has been more heavily fancied to come away with the ultimate prize. It might be a unique pressure to cope with, but it is a reflection of the overhaul the team has undergone since the last World Cup.

Indeed, the build-up to the tournament has not been so much an analytical look at how England could triumph but more about trying to find a chink in their armour. But injuries have cleared themselves up, selection has been finalised ruthlessly and their attacking philosophy remains unbroken.

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Du Plessis has an experienced squad at his disposal

That Morgan can begin to speak about what winning a maiden World Cup could do for the sport in a wider context says as much about how relaxed the team are and how comfortable they are with their tag as outstanding favourites.

"It would mean a huge amount," the Irishman said when asked about the impact an England World Cup win could have.

"The World Cup raises the profile of the game and a platform for every young kid in this country to have a hero or inspiration to pick up a ball or a bat. To go on and win it, I can't imagine what it would do."

In many ways, South Africa are the perfect opponent on day one for the world champions-elect. This is not a Proteas squad possessing the star names of yesteryear, but neither is it one dominated by strong memories of previous failures.

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Faf du Plessis leads a squad with potent seamers in the form of Kagiso Rabada and Dale Steyn, evergreen spinner Imran Tahir and plenty of reliable batting figures. One-day cricket may have moved on to a more dynamic format in the last four years, but South Africa have among the most reliable line-up around.

Unhelpfully, they face a horribly unbalanced schedule which could undo their challenge before it has begun. The clash with England starts of a run of three games in the space of seven days - playing Bangladesh and India in their opening games also.

Though South Africa might be able to catch their opponents cold it will test the endurance of a squad both injury prone and with plenty of creaking bodies. Steyn is already out of the opening game at The Oval, a back injury ended Rabada's IPL, while JP Duminy, Du Plessis, Hashim Amla and Tahir are all 34 or above.

A pure cricketing contest, therefore, could leave the four-time semi-finalists well short. But coach Ottis Gibson, who led the hosts' bowling attack for two spells between 2007 and 2010 and 2015 to 2017, is well placed to supply a cocktail of misery.

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Gibson had two spells leading the England bowling attack

"As far as they're concerned, England have won it already," said the 50-year-old mischievously this week, as he attempted to stoke the fire. And in truth, attempting to take Morgan side's eye off the ball is their best chance of causing an upset.

Gibson says he will welcome a fast track but the reality is he will hope the green tinge remains in time for the start of play. England have won 11 of their last 13 matches at The Oval and have been simply imperious since their disastrous exit from the last World Cup. A moving ball could at least threaten their position of utter dominance.

Despite taking apart all-comers in the last four years, England remain untested when the pressure is truly on. Bilateral one-day series and even the Champions Trophy are dwarfed by the enormity of a World Cup. Indeed, it is a whole new world for Trevor Bayliss' men. Should they flourish under the circumstance, it is hard to see anyone stopping them.

Our coverage of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 is brought to you in association with Cricket 19, the official video game of the Ashes. Pre-order your copy now at Amazon.co.uk

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