Former England all-rounder and part of 2005 Ashes-winning squad, Andrew Flintoff has put forth his prediction regarding all ten teams including hosts Three Lions and Virat Kohli-led Team India at the ICC World Cup 2019. However, his prophecy might not sit well with die-hard fans of the Men in Blue.
On Thursday (May 30), in the curtain-raiser of the ten-team tournament, hosts England had convincingly beaten South Africa by 104 runs. After being asked to bat first, England rode on some excellent performances including Ben Stokes, Joe Root, Jason Roy and skipper Eoin Morgan himself. Thus, it saw England managing 311 for eight in 50 allotted overs at the Kennington Oval in London.
In reply, the Proteas struggled which eventually saw them getting bundled out inside 40 overs on 207. Jofra Archer, who earned his England residency in March, has managed to scalp three crucial wickets which subsequently saw him conceding just 27 runs in seven overs.
Besides, the star cricket Flintoff believes England holds a good chance to lift the title at home. However, he himself didn’t feature in the ODI World Cup for England.
While speaking about 2015 finalists New Zealand, Flintoff reiterated the Black Caps wouldn’t be that effective. However, he admitted the fact while having a liking for the Kiwis.
“Not giving them much hope, to be honest. But I like the New Zealanders,” Flintoff revealed in a video statement shared by ICC on its Cricket World Cup Twitter handle.
Flintoff believes England will lift the title of the ICC World Cup 2019:
The prominent face in England sport who also tried his hand in boxing, believes Bangladesh haven’t suited to the prevailing circumstances in the United Kingdom (UK).
He further named the reigning champions as semi-finalists. But also backed Windies while saying they have got the potential to go a long way.
Furthermore, he has reiterated unpredictable Pakistan has shown what they could do in such tourneys. Adding, Sri Lanka also has a chance to lay hands on the trophy. He backed his statement by saying the Islanders have always delivered at the ICC events.
Interestingly, he conceded that Afghanistan could cause upset in the ongoing twelfth edition of the World Cup 2019.
In conclusion, the 41-year-old Flintoff maintained the World No.2 Team India will be one of the three semi-finalists. But he added they would end up losing against the No.1 ranked team England either in semis or the grand finale.
Watch Andrew Flintoff predicting the fate of teams at the ICC World Cup 2019:
Who's going to be 'on top of the world' at #CWC19? ?
We got @flintoff11's quick-fire predictions! ? pic.twitter.com/vAtsyexb7E
— ICC Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) May 28, 2019