The England squad for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy was confirmed on Tuesday and there were few surprises as the fifteen-man line-up boasts an encouraging blend of quality, youth and experience that can go all the way this summer. We look at why Eoin Morgan's men can be England's first ever winners of an international 50-over tournament...
A Growing Force In Limited Overs Cricket
Since the debacle of the 2015 World Cup, England have become a growing force in the One Day International arena under the calming hand of their level-headed Irish leader, Morgan, who has seen his team win 23 of their past 36 completed ODI's, including 13 of the past 17.
The transition period since the last World Cup is over and England are hitting form at the right time for the Champions Trophy, which has been a tournament that they have traditionally enjoyed, with England sides of old reaching the final in 2004 and 2016, either side of a semi-final effort in 2013.
England were beaten by India in the final when they last hosted the Champions Trophy four years ago as a low-scoring match at Edgbaston proved to be their undoing but this crop of English players are a far superior bunch to the class of 2013.
The fifteen-man squad named for the upcoming 2017 tournament are big game players who have thrived in limited overs cricket in recent years, with Ben Stokes, Sam Billings, Morgan, Jos Buttler, Chris Woakes and Jason Roy all gaining valuable experience of massive occasions during their time competing in the Indian Premier League.
The 'powers that be' within English cricket have finally recognised the value of exposing their players to a global tournament and the squad will enjoy the best possible preparation to assist their transition to the 50-over format, with the group stages of County Cricket's Royal London One Day Cup due to be played during April and May so that England's players can participate in as much white-ball cricket as possible in the lead-up to the Champions Trophy.
Home Advantage
The Royal London One Day Cup offers a prime opportunity for England's players to hone their skills in home conditions and they do tend to prosper on their own patch, with the national side having won 12 of their past 19 ODI's at home, as well as three of their past four ODI series in England.
They will enjoy the benefit of a couple of warm-up matches against Ireland and South Africa before the Champions Trophy gets underway on 1st June, when they will start proceedings in Group A against Bangladesh, who have lost 11 of their 14 ODI's in England, prior to taking on New Zealand and Australia.
Joe Root
England should qualify for the knockout stages and their recent experience of the latter stages of international tournaments will stand them in great stead to go all the way. The Champions Trophy squad includes all of the players - Chris Jordan apart - who represented England in the final of the 2016 World T20, which they lost to the West Indies.
Expect England's players to be stronger for that experience and one man could prove to be the difference when they bid to finally get over the line by winning some silverware in 2017 - Joe Root.
England's star batsman is still only 26 years of age but he is a genuine force in all three formats of cricket and his form since the World Cup failure of 2015 is sensational. In the past two years of ODI cricket, Root has scored 1,542 runs, including five centuries, at an eye-watering average of 61.68 in 29 matches.
Root is a class above and his teammates aren't bad either.
The Squad
With an average age of 27 years and 4 months, this England squad are peaking at exactly the right time and they are a force to be reckoned with in all conditions.
The batting order is flexible, with Alex Hales, Jason Roy, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali and Eoin Morgan all interchangeable, while Ben Stokes gives the team balance as he is the world-class all-rounder that every team in the world craves.
Chris Woakes and David Willey are proven new ball bowlers in this format, while the explosive Mark Wood gives the pace attack a bit of 'X-Factor', and Adil Rashid's return of 52 wickets at 33.73 in the last two years of ODI cricket are indicative of a man growing in confidence on the world stage.
Add in the pace and bounce of Liam Plunkett, as well as the potential of Jake Ball, to the bowling attack, and England lay claim to a squad that can win the Champions Trophy this summer.
