October 5th 2023.
Jos Buttler joins the rest of the World Cup captains on the eve of the tournament - the start of England's defence of the World Cup they won four years ago. It all begins in Ahmedabad, against the same team they beat in the 2019 final by the 'barest of margins' to become world champions for the first time.
If everyone is fit, England will be able to field seven of the side that played in that match. However, since the last World Cup, Buttler has played 27 matches, which is 18 fewer than Virat Kohli and Joe Root has played just 19 ODIs.
England's approach to this World Cup is to not approach it as a distinct format, but as T20 x 2.5. Buttler's rhetoric is all about all-out attack and cricket without fear or ambiguity. This contrasts with tournament favourites India, who are likely to adopt a more cautious, wickets-in-hand approach, especially in front of their billion-strong adoring public.
This is the first time India have hosted the 50-over World Cup on their own, and the expectations on their team will be enormous. But any combination of India, England, Pakistan, Australia, New Zealand or South Africa could be on the grand stage on November 19.
To get there, a combination of nerve, consistency and that special, game-changing moment in the field is likely to be required. As well as luck, especially in the knockout stages - something that aided England in 2019.
The format of the tournament is the same as four years ago. Pitches should be batting paradises, and the main point of difference among teams will be the bowling. Spin tends to dominate in India, but dew could also be a factor in limiting its effectiveness.
England have an excellent chance of making it two in two, though their bowling does not appear as strong for the conditions as their batting, which runs deep. Their trio of left-arm pacemen, Sam Curran, Reece Topley and David Willey fit the brief, but they need the ball to swing to be properly effective.
Moeen Ali, Adil Rashid, Liam Livingstone and Joe Root will form England's spin attack. Eoin Morgan, England's triumphant captain in 2019, said Rashid would be England's key bowler.
With most games day-night affairs, every ounce of collective knowledge will be needed as they traverse an area as large as Gibraltar to John O'Groats and Bangor to Berlin.
Two Test-playing countries are absent, West Indies and Ireland, their places taken by Netherlands and Sri Lanka following their success in the pre-tournament qualifier. Afghanistan play because they finished in the top eight of the ODI rankings. All have it in them to cause the odd upset.
India remain the bookies' favourite but many fancy South Africa who have a good, varied bowling attack and some big-hitting batsmen. New Zealand and Pakistan tend to over-perform at tournaments, so England will need good results against them in their first and last group matches.
It's set to be an exciting and unpredictable tournament. Who will come out on top? Only time will tell.
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