England’s three-match ODI series against South Africa, beginning on Tuesday, marks their first assignment in the format since winning the World Cup last July. It’s time to begin preparations for the 2023 Cricket World Cup, to be held in India..

Wisden writers Phil Walker, Jo Harman, James Wallace and Ben Gardner have decided to peer into the crystal ball and predict the squad that will fly over to play in the 2023 Cricket World Cup. 

Jo Harman, Wisden Cricket Monthly magazine editor

Jos Buttler (c & wk)
Jofra Archer
Jonny Bairstow
Tom Banton
Sam Curran
Tom Curran
Sam Hain
Saqib Mahmood
Matt Parkinson
Ollie Pope
Hamidullah Qadri
Joe Root
Jason Roy
Ben Stokes
Chris Woakes

Eight of England’s triumphant 2019 squad have the chance to make it two World Cup titles on the bounce. Tom Banton has broken up England’s greatest ever opening pair, with Bairstow and Roy fighting it out to partner the two-time winner of the IPL orange cap. Joe Root just holds off the challenge of Sam Hain for the anchor role at No.3 – that extra spin option will be useful in India – before we’re into the engine room of Pope, Stokes and Buttler, who’s skippering the side.

Liam Dawson will play between one and three ODIs between now and the start of the tournament, be selected as a steady pair of hands should Sowter roll an ankle in the warm-up, and it will be without doubt the right call.

James Wallace, Wisden writer

Jos Buttler (c & wk)
Moeen Ali
Jofra Archer
Jonny Bairstow
Tom Banton
Sam Curran
Saqib Mahmood
Matt Parkinson
Ollie Pope
Adil Rashid
Joe Root
Jason Roy
Ben Stokes
Chris Woakes
Mark Wood

It’s increasingly become a squad-based game and I think this covers all bases, with a nice mix of experience and raw talent. Two of the most destructive will go up top (Banton and Roy), followed by a couple of the classiest (Root and Pope) and then a brace of deadly finishers (Stokes and Buttler).

Woakes will be slightly younger than Liam Plunkett was in 2019 and has the beard, bulked up frame and the reliability to bowl the all-important ‘dead dog overs’ that Plunkett was so adept at.

Archer and Mahmood offer genuine pace/guile, and there’s plenty of spin options on Indian wickets. Bairstow is on the bench to inspire a Michael Douglas in ‘Falling Down’ fury of form; he’ll probably blitz some match-winning centuries when he gets his chance. Jos is captain, has to be. I’d like Morgan to be involved somehow, maybe as ‘Specialist Vibe Coach’? A sort of ‘Eoin-Wan-Kenobi’ or ‘inverted Cummings’ figure in the background just emitting an aura of calm and clinical in equal measure. Beanie or hood optional.