World Cup: Head says England, heart says India favourite to win, says Srishti Rathi

Home advantage may help the hosts trump others, according to Srishti.

Eoin Morgan is captaining England for the second consecutive World Cup whereas this is Virat Kohli's first World Cup as skipper

If you ask me who I think will win the World Cup, without a doubt, I’d pick India. I started watching cricket for the first time in 2011. Naturally, India and its chances in the tournament are an emotional thing for me and my family more than anything else.

On the other hand, one must look at the tournament practically. England and India seem to be the strongest sides on paper. England comes in with the added advantage of being hosts and I think this will help them trump other teams in the tournament, especially with English weather playing spoilsport.

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I do not think this will be a high-scoring world cup, at least not the 500+ score kind of tournament. Not this time. I can see a few games hitting the 350+ mark but besides that, I suppose we will see scores of 250-300 tops.

India though, has MS Dhoni and that’s a huge point in our favour. His experience and technical prowess on one side, he brings in the fitness of someone a decade younger than him. His assistance will also come in handy for Virat Kohli, especially with the kind of pitch conditions that exist in England and Wales. That, he is in form is an added advantage.

There are other players I will be watching out for too. Virat Kohli is the highest ranked ODI player around, so we can realistically expect some explosive batting from the skipper. Two other big-hitters, Andre Russell and David Warner are also equally lethal. When they get set, it’s hard to get them out of the crease.

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Another player to watch out for would be Chris Gayle. We are well aware of his ballistic approach to batting and this weekend needs some of that to see those 500 scores everyone is talking about.

Do not think this is a batsman’s world cup. The bowlers will make all the difference on these English pitches. I see work cut out for Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. India’s bowling department could use some introspection to see where the machinery needs oil.