Thursday 1 June 2017 11:32, UK
The ICC Champions Trophy gets under way on Thursday with England versus Bangladesh at The Oval, live on Sky Sports 2 from 10am.
But who is set to take the tournament by storm? Who will fire with the bat? Who will impress with the ball? Which new stars will emerge? And who will win?
Here we pick out some ones to watch from each of the four teams in Group A, while Sky Sports' Nasser Hussain also pitches in with his tournament tips…
Chances in a tweet
Devastating white-ball form since the 2015 World Cup - 21 scores of 300 plus - has England rightly considered favourites on home soil.
Top-scorer
Ben Stokes. Put simply, how can you overlook Stokes on current form? He smashed a maiden T20 ton in an outstanding IPL spell with Rising Pune Supergiant, following it up with his second ODI century for England in Southampton. Sure, he bats lower down the order, but with England's top three looking a little out of sorts against South Africa - plus concerns over how much he'll be able to bowl - it's with the bat where Stokes could seriously fire.
Wicket-taker
Mark Wood. If he can stay fit, Wood offers England genuine pace and the wicket-taking threat in the middle overs they've lacked during his absence. Also, he performed perfectly under pressure in the final over of the second ODI win over South Africa.
Gun fielder
"Ben Stokes. A freak in the field! Look at some of the catches he has taken at slip - Trent Bridge in the 2015 Ashes - and then also on the boundary, like his one in the IPL. He always wants to be where the action is, where the ball goes."
Emerging talent
Jake Ball. Perhaps the hardest category to pick, as England have been a tight unit largely consisting of the same familiar faces since that 2015 World Cup debacle, meaning there is unlikely to be an emerging talent to force through into the fold. But Ball impressed Shaun Pollock during the South Africa series, seems to have forced his way above David Willey in the pecking order, and with fitness concerns still circling over Stokes and Wood, he could end up playing a key role.
Squad list
Eoin Morgan (c), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jake Ball, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler (wkt), Alex Hales, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood
Chances in a tweet
Write off Australia at your peril. Though the team may be distracted by contract disputes back home, they know how to win major tournaments.
Top-scorer
"David Warner. I was considering Ben Stokes, Joe Root, Steve Smith, but I've gone for Warner at the top of the order, as he should get more of an opportunity to get big runs. His stats in one-day cricket are incredible, plus I love the way he plays, and he is in brilliant nick - he had another fantastic IPL season - so it's hard to look past him."
Wicket-taker
"Mitchell Starc. I see the leading wicket-taker bowling with the new ball, and at the death, as that's where the most wickets are to be had. He has had a pretty long layoff to injury, so it does slightly depend on his fitness. Adil Rashid is another who has a chance in the group - England's leading wicket-taker since the last World Cup - but I'm going to go for Starc. Though it burns me to pick another Australian, if the new ball swings, he could be devastating up front, and then he bowls fabulous yorkers at the death."
Gun fielder
Glenn Maxwell. The true definition of an allrounder. Maxwell's best is generally saved for the bat, but he can pitch in with odd over of handy offspin too, and boy can he field! One of the new breed of diving-grab, boundary-catching, direct-hitting monsters!
Emerging talent
Marcus Stoinis. Although he is of an advanced age for an 'emerging' player, 27-year-old Stoinis certainly is only just starting out on the international stage, with only three ODI caps to his name. The second of those saw him hit a sensational unbeaten 146 - off just 117 balls - in an agonising six-run defeat to New Zealand. With Mitchell Marsh out injured, it's Stoinis who could fill that vital allrounder berth.
Squad list
Steve Smith (c), Pat Cummins, Aaron Finch, John Hastings, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Moises Henriques, Chris Lynn, Glenn Maxwell, James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade (wkt), David Warner, Adam Zampa
Chances in a tweet
Pushovers no more. While a top two finish may be a stretch, they beat New Zealand in a warm-up game and could easily upset one of the big boys.
Top-scorer
Tamim Iqbal. On the surface, this might seem like a lazy pick - it feels like forever that Tamim has been singled out as the single biggest batting talent in the Bangladesh team. That's not necessarily the case now though, with youngsters Sabbir Rahman and Soumya Sarkar showing promise, while his opening partner Imrul Kayes has kicked on of late. But the competition has only fuelled Tamim to improve himself - hitting four of his eight ODI tons stretching the decade in the last two years, averaging 55.20 in that time.
Wicket-taker
Mustafizur Rahman. After roaring onto the scene with a sensational 2016 World T20 tournament just over 12 months ago, Mustafizur's stock has somewhat dropped of late after injury troubles and an IPL tournament largely confined to the bench. But expect him to bounce back this summer.
Gun fielder
Sabbir Rahman. Not just a promising prospect with the bat, Sabbir is also an energetic presence in the field, earmarked as one of the best fielders in the country even prior to his ODI debut three years ago.
Emerging talent
"Mustafizur Rahman. The Fizz! More of a re-emerging talent, rather than emerging one. He has been injured for a little while, but that might help him, as people were maybe just starting to work him out and they won't have seen a lot of him recently. With his variations, he is the archetypal modern one-day bowler and another wonderful death bowler."
Squad list
Mashrafe Mortaza (c), Imrul Kayes, Mahmudullah, Mehedi Hasan, Mosaddek Hossain, Mushfiqur Rahim (wkt), Mustafizur Rahman, Rubel Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Shafiul Islam, Shakib Al Hasan, Soumya Sarkar, Sunzamul Islam, Tamim Iqbal, Taskin Ahmed
Chances in a tweet
Everyone's favourite dark horses might just be so this year - stuck in a tough group and without talismanic Brendon McCullum due to retirement.
Top-scorer
Kane Williamson. The New Zealand skipper is quite rightly included in what's considered the leading band of batsmen on the world stage - joining Root, Smith, Kohli - thanks to his classy stroke-making skills. Sure to be towards the top of the run-scoring charts with the fellow members of his quartet.
Wicket-taker
Jeetan Patel. New Zealand made the wise move of including the 36-year-old veteran despite him having played only four ODIs since 2009. In that time Patel has proven a canny performer at county level with Warwickshire so his experience of English conditions could prove to be a real asset for the Black Caps.
Gun fielder
Mitchell Santner. The allrounder just shades it among tough competition, including his captain Williamson, Tom Latham, Trent Boult and Martin Guptill among others.
Emerging talent
Tom Latham. The opener endured a dreadful run of six consecutive ODIs without reaching double figures - including three ducks - earlier this year, but fired his way back to form with a hundred in one of their warm-up wins over Ireland. As his Test ton at Headingley on New Zealand's last trip to these shores in 2015 indicated, he has the game for English conditions.
Squad list
Kane Williamson (c), Corey Anderson, Trent Boult, Neil Broom, Colin de Grandhomme, Martin Guptill, Tom Latham, Mitchell McClenaghan, Adam Milne, James Neesham, Jeetan Patel, Luke Ronchi (wkt), Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor
Nasser says: England and Australia. "I see England as favourites - the form they're in, with home conditions, under Eoin Morgan's captaincy. The other spot is going to be between Australia and New Zealand. If Australia can keep their bowlers fit throughout the tournament, then I'll just about give it to them.
"It's a funny tournament: England could slip up - look at what happened the last time they played Bangladesh at a world tournament, they got knocked out of the 2015 World Cup. But this is a different looking England side. I'd be very surprised if they didn't make it through the group.
"Write off New Zealand at your peril in any world tournament. They get forever labelled as dark horses, although how long can that continue until you aren't the dark horse anymore?
"And Bangladesh, I wouldn't completely rule them out either. They have progressed so much in the last two years, but the key for them is, can they handle the real pressure situations? Go back to the World T20 a year ago, they seemed to be celebrating beating India before the game was won and ended up losing. They can get a little too excitable at times.
"This is the harder group of the two, for sure."
Watch the opening game of the ICC Champions Trophy as England face Bangladesh at The Oval - live on Sky Sports 2 from 10am on Thursday.
