"Good luck to all three 2019 finalists who'll be in action today. Eng, NZ, and umpire Kumar Dharmasena"- Wasim Jaffer ahead of 2023 World Cup

Former Indian batter Wasim Jaffer extended good luck wishes to the England and New Zealand teams as they will play in the curtain raiser of the 2023 ICC ODI World Cup on Thursday (October 5) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Both teams squared off in the final of the previous edition of the World Cup in 2019. It was an epic cliffhanger as the scores were tied after 50 overs and also in the Super over. England then emerged victorious via boundary count rule.

Wasim Jaffer took to his X handle to wish both teams well ahead of their match this afternoon. As always, he did it in a cheeky way by including umpire Kumar Dharmasena in the post. The Sri Lankan was the umpire during the final of the 2019 ODI World Cup match. He will also officiate today along with Nitin Menon.

Jaffer wrote on X:

"It's a tradition to have the finalists from last WC start the next WC. So good luck to all three 2019 finalists who'll be in action today. Eng, NZ, and umpire Kumar Dharmasena #ENGvNZ

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Irrespective of whether or not Ben Stokes plays, it won’t matter that much: Aakash Chopra ahead of the England vs New Zealand match in the World Cup

Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra previewed the England team ahead of the opening match of the World Cup against New Zealand. There is uncertainty over Ben Stokes' availability for the match due to a fitness issue.

Chopra opined that his absence would not hurt the English side much as they have great depth in their batting department.

In a video on his YouTube channel [5:10], Chopra said:

“Irrespective of whether or not Ben Stokes plays, it won’t matter that much. There is a lot of depth in England’s batting. Liam Livingstone comes in after Jos Buttler and he is followed by Sam Curran and Chris Woakes. Their strategy will be to keep going after the bowling. That is what I feel."

He continued:

“They are batting-heavy, but they should not drown in that batting depth. We saw it with Australia recently. Let’s see whether or not England fall into that trap. Also, they have not played a lot in Asia in the last two to three years. They are looking a little light in the bowling. They are a slightly bowling-weak team. They have wicket-takers in Mark Wood and Adil Rashid. There are not too many other wicket-takers.

Who do you think will win the opening match of the 2023 ICC ODI World Cup? Let us know your predictions in the comments section.