The five favourites for the World Cup

	Ian Bell would make a better opener for England than Matt Prior © Getty Images Enlarge
Related Links Audio/Video: What lies in store in the 2011 World Cup? Series/Tournaments: ICC Cricket World Cup Teams: Australia | England | India | South Africa | Sri Lanka

The 2011 World Cup is potentially the most open since the inaugural tournament in 1975. As many as five teams have a realistic chance of winning the coveted trophy.

Unlike the 2007 tournament where it was simply a matter of: "Who'll meet Australia in the final?" this time the defending champions are not favourites.

If any team is entitled to outright favouritism, it's joint host India. They have an unbelievably strong batting line-up, with the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag. If youngsters Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina also play to their potential, that's a whole lot of firepower, and it's anchored by the cool captain, MS Dhoni. India are perfectly equipped to set huge targets as well as chase them down. They're also well stocked with spinners, both frontline and part-time. The emergence of R Ashwin takes some of the load off Harbhajan SIngh, and while Yuvraj Singh's batting has waned lately, his bowling has prospered.

The big impediments to India winning the trophy for the first time since 1983 are their inconsistent pace attack, which relies heavily on the fragile Zaheer Khan, and the massive weight of fan expectation. No team has ever won the trophy playing in a home final but India have a great chance of breaking that sequence.

The Australian selectors have gambled by basing their attack around aggressive fast bowlers. They continued in this vein by choosing an attacking offspinner, Jason Krezja, to replace the injured Nathan Hauritz. How far Australia progress will depend to a degree on how well Ricky Ponting succeeds in adapting his captaincy to constantly seek wickets as the ultimate mode of containment. Australia will also have to bat well, especially when the spin bowlers are operating, and this is where they'll miss the versatility of Michael Hussey. A meeting with England in the quarter-finals is the most likely outcome, and following their recent comprehensive triumph in the seven-ODI series, Australia should be confident of that match-up.

For once South Africa have a balanced attack rather than one heavily reliant upon seamers. They also have a strong batting line-up - not quite as powerful as India's but close. They have the team to win, but do they have the temperament? As skipper, Graeme Smith has to utilise his varied attack and also find a way to keep his team from tensing up in the big matches. History is not on his side.

The last time the tournament was played on the subcontinent, in 1996, Sri Lanka won the trophy. They'd love to repeat that performance in order to give their champion, Muttiah Muralitharan, the perfect send-off. Sri Lanka have a steady attack - strong in spin bowling but one good pace bowler short of dominant. The batting, headed by Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene, is solid but lacks a genuine middle-order power threat. If Tillakaratne Dilshan fires at the top, that won't be such a problem.

Whichever team finishes top in Group A will meet either West Indies or Bangladesh in the quarter-finals. This is a major incentive, and it means the Australia v Sri Lanka contest is crucial.

This year looked like England's big chance to win their first World Cup, but their batsmen played spin bowling poorly in Australia. That's not likely to improve on the subcontinent, and with Eoin Morgan injured, the England batting relies even more on the erratic Kevin Pietersen. Strategically, Andrew Strauss needs to be more aggressive as a captain, and he should demote Matt Prior to the middle order. Ian Bell plays both pace and spin well and can make big scores; he's a better alternative as an opener.

Of those five teams, England are the most likely to miss the semi-finals.

Strength versus subtlety in both encounters is an enticing and competitive mix. Hopefully this will lead to an absorbing final, which would be a vast improvement on the 2007 schemozzle in the Caribbean that masqueraded as the pinnacle of the one-day game.