If there is one question to answer about the England team, it is who will fill the seamer spots in the XI.

With the World Cup being played on the hard decks of South Africa and Zimbabwe, England are likely to persist with three absolutely fast bowlers supported by Curran.

Spearhead Jofra Archer is an automatic selection, assuming he stays fit, while Gus Atkinson did no harm to his cause in his two outings against India, taking 3-50 at Cardiff and maintaining an economy rate of four at Lord’s when no other player had less than six.

Third place is still up for grabs, with neither Josh Tongue nor Saqib Mahmood cementing their place in the team.

Tongue took one wicket in two matches and was expensive at Lord’s, conceding 43 runs in five overs, while Mahmood took 2-52 at Cardiff, but was bowled out by Tongue for the end of the series.

Brydon Carse returned to the team for this series after recovering from wrist and elbow injuries that kept him out of international cricket, while the selectors also favored Jamie Overton’s all-round skills and may return him once he has recovered from the thigh injury he suffered in the Indian Premier League.

With a five-match Ashes series ahead of the World Cup, England can expect at least one seamer to be injured and will want a strong group of pacers ready to step up in the team of the tournament.

There is also slight concern about spinner Adil Rashid, who has had a quiet 2026, taking eight wickets in ODIs and just one in this series.

The 38-year-old’s economy rate of the year is consistent with recent efforts, remaining below six, while he can still claim to be England’s biggest threat in overs 11-40, taking 32 of his 72 wickets in that period since the start of last year.