'I've got this vision of meeting Australia in the final'

England captain Clare Connor is confident that her side can lift the World Cup for a third time when they head to South Africa this month. Australia are the one side who could stand in their way she says but England, the second favourites, have been working hard to ensure they leave no stone unturned in their quest for success.

"I am hoping that we don't meet Australia in the semis: I've got this vision of meeting them in the final," 28-year-old Connor told Cricinfo at the launch of England's World Cup campaign at the House of Commons on Monday.

"But it might not be like that: we might beat them in the semis and meet someone else in the final. They're the team with the mystery surrounding them. We've broken that down with New Zealand now because we beat them in the summer: that was an important series to win. The Aussies sit rightly above us."

England are ranked second in the world, thanks in no small part to their 3-2 series victory at home to the World Cup holders New Zealand last summer. And Connor believes that the team is gelling at just the right moment. "The mood is brilliant," she says. "We have a strong sense of confidence in how the preparations have been going. We're a team that's been winning over the last 18 months so that helps hugely. It's one big happy family. There's a massive age range - 19 to 39 - and it's a squad that's just clicking more and more."

But Connor is aware that the road to a successful World Cup is a long and difficult one, especially during the tournament itself. However, she revealed that England will be ready to cope with whatever challenges are presented to them. "We know that there might be disappointment along the way," she admits. "With a World Cup you rarely win every game and we've talked about that, about coping with that pressure. It's all part of it."

And England's preparations were given a boost by working with experts in each discipline of the game. "I'm not just saying this - we couldn't have been any more prepared," she said. "We've had nutritional support, strength and conditioning support, bowling specialist, specialist fielding work with Trevor Penney. Fast bowlers have worked with Troy Cooley. Batters have worked with Graham Gooch. It's been the whole package so we're just raring to go."