'I can see England beating India in a tight CWC 2023 final': James Anderson shares BOLD prediction

The ICC ODI World Cup 2023 edition gets underway on October 5 (Thursday) with defending champions England taking on New Zealand in Ahmedabad. Meanwhile, the Rohit Sharma-led India will open their campaign on October 8 (Sunday) when they face Australia at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai. With the mega event less than two days away from commencement, many former and active cricketers have shared their predictions. England's Test specialist James Anderson has also joined the bandwagon and made a bold claim.

Anderson feels England, India, Australia and South Africa will be in the four semi-finals whereas England and India will proceed to the final, on November 19 in Ahmedabad. The 41-year-old added that he feels the defending champions England will go past India in a tight final.

Speaking to the BBC Test Match Special, Anderson stated, "The semi-finalists will be England, India, Australia and South Africa. I like how South Africa turned it around in their series against Australia. Their batting is strong and they have nice options with the ball. Pakistan will be close, as will New Zealand, but both will miss out. I can see England beating India in a tight final."

Add WION as a Preferred Source

Also Read:CWC 2023: Sunil Gavaskar reacts to Ravindra Jadeja's batting woes, points out 'little things' in his support

On the other hand, recently-retired England pacer Steven Finn feels England, India, Pakistan and New Zealand will end at the top four but has backed Rohit & Co. to win the coveted title. Finn has backed India as the home team have won the last three editions.

Finn opined, "This World Cup is the most open there has been in a long time. The lack of 50-over cricket in the build-up will mean some teams will go in slightly muddled about how they approach this format. The four that will reach the semis are England, New Zealand, India and Pakistan. They have the most balanced squads."

"The last three World Cups have been won by hosts - India in 2011, Australia in 2015 and England four years ago. With that in mind, India will win it again this year. They have played significantly more one-dayers than anyone else and home support will be a big advantage," he added.

England squad:Jos Buttler (c), Moeen Ali, Gus Atkinson, Jonny Bairstow, Sam Curran, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes, Reece Topley, David Willey, Mark Wood, Chris Woakes.

India squad:Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya (vc), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav.

WATCH WION LIVE HERE

You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.