The 2023 Cricket World Cup in India has begun. The hosts will be looking for a triumph on home soil, whilst England will look to retain their trophy.
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00:00 Four years on from what many argue was the greatest ever cricket match at Lourdes in
00:07 the World Cup final, cricket's biggest tournament returns to see if England can defend their
00:12 title in India. A scintillating summer of Ashes cricket has got the country very much
00:18 in the mood for the 50-over tournament. Stuart Broad's spell at the Oval in the final test
00:25 was a fitting way in which to end his career. As with the competition in England four years
00:32 ago, proceedings begin with a group stage in a round-robin format where each team plays
00:38 each other once to determine a final order. The top four teams then qualify for the knockout
00:43 rounds of which there is a semi-final and then a final. The ten teams that will contest
00:49 the World Cup are as follows. Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, defending champions
00:55 England, hosts India, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa and finally
01:02 Sri Lanka. And if the current one-day international world rankings were to be believed, India
01:07 would be favourites with Pakistan, Australia and South Africa making up the top four. England
01:13 sit in fifth place but the return of Ben Stokes to the format, despite having retired from
01:19 it previously, will give them an extra edge. England also boast young talent in Harry Brook
01:25 and white-ball captain Joss Butler, the latter of which was instrumental in the successes
01:30 of 2019. England will also field several of the old guard including Joel Root, Adil Rashid
01:37 and Muin Ali. As hosts, India will certainly fancy their chances in conditions that they
01:44 are familiar with. They will be hoping that Virat Kohli can find his best form and fire
01:49 his nation to glory. Off the back of their Ashes Summer, Australia will have a point
01:54 to prove. Whilst this is a different format, many of their test side will be involved.
02:00 Pat Cummins especially will want to put behind him the controversy of the Ashes in the summer
02:05 and put in some good performances. India's pitchers tend to favour spin, meaning having
02:12 a quality spin bowling line-up could go a long way to ensuring progress in the tournament.
02:19 India of course also boast the IPL, the biggest domestic T20 competition in the world and
02:25 also they have the support of 1 billion people, meaning it would be very brave to bet against
02:30 them. Four years ago however, it was England and New Zealand who made the final, defeating
02:35 Australia and India respectively in the semi-finals, so don't count them out just yet. Millions
02:41 will tune in around the globe to the Cricket World Cup to see who will take home the trophy.
02:47 It promises to be a spellbinding event full of exciting cricket. Will England deliver?
02:53 Will India do it on home soil or will it head elsewhere with a different winner picking
02:59 up the trophy?
03:00 [BLANK_AUDIO]