Stage is set for the Champions Trophy, famously known as the ‘Mini World Cup’ (this is different from ICC World Cup which is held once every four years) which begins at The Oval in London tomorrow. The inaugural match will feature England taking on  Bangladesh, who lost miserably to India in one of its practice matches yesterday.

All eyes will be on the Indian team, the defending champions, who won the tournament in 2013 defeating England. Time has past since then with Virat Kohli taking over the reins of the young Indian team. However, the experience of former skipper M.S. Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh will be of great help for Kohli, who is leading the side for the first time in a major tournament. India, having won both its practice matches against New Zealand and Bangladesh, has a fair chance of defending the title.

Speaking to Star of Mysore, former Indian player Vijay Bharadwaj said, “India has a good chance of winning the tournament. But, defending the title will not be easy as England is posing threat and South Africa is unpredictable. There is   90 per cent chance of India emerging victorious. Only thing is that the team should stay focused throughout.”

There is also the strong looking Australian team which has won the tournament twice (2006-07 and 2009-10). The Steve Smith led side will be eyeing to repeat the previous feat.

Meanwhile, India’s campaign in the tournament starts against its arch rival Pakistan on June 4. Later the team will also play against Sri Lanka and South Africa on June 8 and  June 11 respectively.

This is probably the first time the tournament, which is in its eighth edition, will not feature West Indies as it was not ranked among the top eight teams in the ICC rankings. The will end on June 18 with the finals being played at The Oval.

SQUADS

India: Virat Kohli(c), Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Yuvraj Singh, Ajinkya Rahane, Dinesh Karthik, Kedar Jadhav, MS Dhoni, Hardik Pandya, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami.

Pakistan: Sarfraz Ahmed(c), Ahmed Shehzad, Azhar Ali, Babar Azam, Fahim Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imad Wasim, Junaid Khan, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Hafeez, Shadab Khan, Shoaib Malik, Wahab Riaz, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Sohail.

Australia: Steven Smith(c), David Warner, Pat Cummins, Aaron Finch, John Hastings, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Moises Henriques, Chris Lynn, Glenn Maxwell, James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, Adam Zampa.

Sri Lanka: Angelo Mathews(c), Upul Tharanga, Niroshan Dickwella, Kusal Mendis, Kusal Perera, Chamara Kapugedera, Asela Gunaratne, Dinesh Chandimal, Lasith Malinga, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Kulasekara, Nuwan Pradeep, Thisara Perera, Lakshan Sandakan, Seekkuge Prasanna.

Bangladesh: Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Imrul Kayes, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, Sabbir Rahman, Mahmudullah, Mosaddek Hossain Saikat, Mashrafe Mortaza(c), Mustafizur Rahman, Rubel Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Sunzamul Islam, Mehedi Hasan, Shafiul Islam.

England: Eoin Morgan(c), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jake Ball, Sam Billings, Alex Hales, Jos Buttler, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.

South Africa: Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock, Faf du Plessis, AB de Villiers(c), Jean-Paul Duminy, David Miller, Chris Morris, Wayne Parnell, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada, Imran Tahir, Dwaine Pretorius, Keshav Maharaj, Farhaan Behardien, Morne Morkel.

New Zealand: 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, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor.

Fixtures

June 1:  England Vs Bangladesh

Venue: Kennington Oval, London, 3 PM

June 2: Australia Vs New Zealand

Edgbaston, Birmingham, 3 PM

June 3: Sri Lanka Vs South Africa

Venue Kennington Oval, London, 3 PM

June 4: India Vs Pakistan

Venue: Edgbaston, Birmingham, 3 PM

June 5: Australia Vs Bangladesh

Kennington Oval, London, 6 PM

June 6: England Vs New Zealand

Venue: Sophia Gardens, Cardiff, 3 PM

June 7: Pakistan Vs South Africa

Venue: Edgbaston, Birmingham, 6 PM

June 8: India Vs Sri Lanka

Venue: Kennington Oval, London, 3 PM

June 9: New Zealand Vs Bangladesh

Sophia Gardens, Cardiff, 3 PM

June 10: England Vs Australia

Venue: Edgbaston, Birmingham, 3 PM

June 11: India Vs South Africa

Venue: Kennington Oval, London, 3 PM

June 12: Sri Lanka Vs Pakistan

Venue: Sophia Gardens, Cardiff, 3 PM

June 14: 1st Semi-Final (A1 v B2)

Venue: Sophia Gardens, Cardiff, 3 PM

June 15: 2nd Semi-Final (A2 v B1)

Venue: Edgbaston, Birmingham, 3 PM

June 18: Final

Kennington Oval, London, 3 PM

Previous Winners

1998-99: Wills International Cup (in Bangladesh) – South Africa

200I-02: ICC Knock Out Tournament (in Kenya) – New Zealand

2002-03: ICC Champions Trophy (in Sri Lanka) – India/ Sri Lanka joint winners

2004: ICC Champions Trophy (in England) – West Indies

2006-07: ICC Champions Trophy (in India) – Australia

2009-10: ICC Champions Trophy (in South Africa) – Australia

2013: ICC Champions Trophy (in England) – India