Nine Britons started last month's Giro d'Italia, a record for a Grand Tour in the modern era, but the resurgence in British cycling is not reflected in the start list for the Tour de France, which begins on Saturday in Monaco.

Only four riders, Mark Cavendish, David Millar, Bradley Wiggins and Charly Wegelius will start, but it should be noted that any lack in quantity is compensated for by quality. Each could have a big impact.

Cavendish: sprint king

Cavendish is the headline-grabber, having won four stages last year and setting out this year with a real chance of becoming the first Brit to win the green jersey of points winner. But Wiggins is the dark horse. Those who have him pigeonholed as a track specialist - and a triple Olympic gold medallist, no less - could be in for a big surprise. But more on Wiggins later - along with some foolhardy predictions.

Boy racer

Cavendish is a "phenom'" to use Millar's description: a phenomenon. A cycling magazine recently claimed that the 24-year old from the Isle of Man is "as close to being unbeatable as any sprinter has ever been": quite a claim, but entirely justified.

In his excellent new book, 'Boy Racer,' Cavendish explains how he gets into position to win the hairy bunch sprints in which he excels; when the peloton charges en masse towards the line, and, amid the heaving mass of bodies and bikes, few of them following a straight line, someone emerges from the melee as winner. Invariably it is Cavendish, often by a length or more.

It looks chaotic, but Cavendish explains that the preparation begins around 50km out, when his Columbia-HTC team gathers at the front and ups the pace - to reel in any breakaways, and/or prevent any fresh attacks.

While his team goes to work, Cavendish hits cruise control. As he describes it, around 50km from the finish of one of the stages he won last year, "I was cruising right in the sweetspot - that magical place, like a magic carpet, right at the base of the arrowhead [of the peloton], maybe twenty positions behind the point of the triangle, where your energy spend - and risk - is minimised."

On his 'magic carpet' Cavendish is transported into the final few kilometres; at which point he will be left with three or four teammates. If all goes to plan, his final lieutenant will swing off the front around 300 metres before the line, and Cavendish will emerge from his slipstream to unleash his sprint. And win.

What Cavendish seems so good at is arriving at that point fresher than most. It owes something to his team, as well as to his bike-handling skills, and his ability to hold his position in a flying bunch with a minimum of effort.

Taming the peleton

From the front, the peloton can look as calm as a duck pond. In fact, it is more like a teeming river, as uncontrolled as white water. Chris Boardman, the fastest man in the world when racing on his own against the clock, never felt at home surrounded by so many bodies; he found the peloton an intimidating place. He offers a telling comparison with Cavendish: "Where I saw bodies, he sees gaps."

In his book Cavendish is every bit as candid as he is in the adrenaline-charged moments following a race, when he is likely to do one of two things, or sometimes both: swear ferociously and/or burst into tears.

In his book he swears every second page and blubs his eyes out on the others. He is emotional, angry, thoughtful and perceptive, complex and contradictory, with a wonderful sense of humour and mischief. One of my favourite episodes is an account of his antagonistic relationship with the colourful Italian Filippo Pozzato, Cavendish's "least favourite rider in the peloton [with] his over-moisturised smug mug."

Pozzato once derided Cavendish, calling him an "amateur." Here, Cavendish exacts delicious revenge: "One day I'll maybe tell Pozzato what his problem is: I think he fancies me."

Touché!

Cavendish versus Pozzato: this should be a duel worth watching in the coming days (especially if Pozzato has read his book).

Cavendish will make a splash in this Tour. It is guaranteed. And the other British riders, Millar, Wiggins and Wegelius, could also shine - though the odds are stacked against Wegelius, called up on Wednesday by his Silence-Lotto team to replace the suspended Dutchman Thomas Dekker.

Is it Millar time?

Millar is in good form, having recovered from a broken collarbone, and his Garmin-Slipstream teammate Wiggins is in outstanding shape, having shaved some weight over the winter. Consequently, he is climbing better than ever, while retaining his speed and power in his specialist event, the time trial.

'Wiggo,' as he is affectionately known, can win Saturday's time trial. And, with Millar, he might triumph in Tuesday's team trial in Montpellier; either way, he could become the first Brit since Millar (in 2000) to wear yellow...

Here are my foolish predictions, then. Cavendish to win three stages and the green jersey; Wiggins to be in yellow on Tuesday evening; and Millar to win a road stage in the second week (if I was being really stupid I'd pick out stage fourteen, Colmar to Besancon).

The big shock, though, could be Wiggins' overall position. He thinks he can finish in the top twenty. I'm not so sure. He is a much-improved climber, but whether he can avoid a bad day, and the attendant plummet down the overall standings, remains to be seen.

Still, if two of these forecasts come true, it will have been an exceptional Tour for the small but high quality gang of British riders - and some kind of victory for this fortune teller, too.

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