Dubai: In the early years of the ICC Cricket World Cup, England were known as the perennial bridesmaids thanks to their final defeats of 1979, 1987 and 1992. More recently, however, their World Cup appearances have deteriorated into fleeting, painful and chastening experiences.

They failed to even reach the knockout stages for three successive editions between 1999 and 2007 and, when they did make it to the quarter-finals in 2011, they were utterly embarrassed by Sri Lanka in a 10-wicket whitewash in Colombo.

And their preparations for the 2015 edition descended into farce thanks to the confusion over Alastair Cook’s position as captain. Late last year, England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) officials repeatedly insisted they would stick with the under-fire opener in Australia and New Zealand, only for a 5-2 series defeat in Sri Lanka — coupled with the captain’s miserable form with the bat — to effectively render his position untenable.

With the axe having been swung, Eoin Morgan was named as Cook’s successor — although he apparently missed 20 calls before receiving the good news.

One of Morgan’s first jobs was to end any speculation over a potential return for outcast Kevin Pietersen. “Kevin’s situation hasn’t changed over the last year. It’s been reiterated over months and days. It was reiterated before Christmas by the chairman of selectors and I’m reiterating it again just to clear it up. Thank you,” the Irishman said.

Same old problems

The head may have rolled, but the same old problems exist for England — a fragile batting line-up and a lack of variety in the bowling department.

Morgan marked his first match as full-time skipper with a century against Australia, but that opening match of the tri-series only brought home the size of his task. An early batting collapse led to an inadequate total, before the bowling attack was made to look toothless by an aggressive opposition.

Not that England’s squad is short of talent — far from it. An in-form Ian Bell can give them a fantastic base to build from, Moeen Ali is a classy batsman and spinner, Joe Root is one of the sport’s hottest prospects and Morgan and Jos Buttler can be exhilerating in the later overs, while James Anderson and Stuart Broad are two of the finest fast bowlers around.

On a good day, England bat all the way down to No. 10. The problem is that, with England, wickets tend to fall in clusters, no matter how technically gifted the batsmen.

And then there is the bowling attack. Anderson, Broad, Steven Finn, Chris Jordan and Chris Woakes are all of a similar vain and, with sideways movement likely to be at a premium Down Under, top batsmen will have little problem swinging through the line and milking any of them for boundaries.

So Ravi Bopara’s steady medium pace will be a vital asset in terms of variety, while James Tredwell and/or Ali will also be required to hold up an end with their off-spin.

England fans will be realistic in their expectations, with few backing them to match their bridesmaids achievements of yesteryear. As long as they avoid being kicked out of the party early and stay competitive throughout, the Barmy Army should be more than happy.