England, placed No.1 on the MRF Tyres ICC Men's ODI Team Rankings, have been touted at strong favourites for the World Cup, which gets underway at home on 30 May. Now Hales, the team's opener, has also expressed confidence that the side can lift their maiden title.

"Yep, I’m going for it and saying yes," Hales said when asked about England's chances in the tournament in an interview published in The Guardian on Monday, 1 April. "I’m the most excited I have ever been. I really think we’re going to do something special."

"I really think we’re going to do something special"

As their ranking indicates, England have evolved into a formidable fifty-over outfit since their shock first-round exit in the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2015. Since then they've been particularly strong at home, winning 30 of their 42 ODIs while losing only nine.

Hales himself has been an integral part of that success story – he has scored 2229 runs at an average of 40.52 and a strike-rate of 97.72 since the previous World Cup. It is likely that he will be in England's playing XI when they face off with South Africa in the opening match at The Oval.

While his stocks in one-day cricket have risen, Hales' red-ball story hasn't been quite as promising. He featured in 11 Tests, but managed only 573 runs at 27.28. He last played a Test in 2016.

But he isn't too worried about his Test career. In fact he seemed to have embraced his fate when, in 2017, he decided to sign a white-ball only contract with Nottinghamshire until 2019. He feels he can't be 'world-class' in the longer format, but hopes to continue making progress in the shorter formats.

"I think there are only a handful of players who can be truly world‑class at all three formats and having played all three, I’m not one of them. But I think I can be in white-ball," he said.