Freddie fear factor

Prior to guiding the minnows on their current ascent, Dav Whatmore was the all-rounder's coach at Lancashire in the late Nineties, and fears that Flintoff is too good a player for his problems to continue.

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As he looked ahead to a game in which defeat would for England would effectively see them knocked out of the competition, Whatmore was keenly aware that an old-fashioned Freddie assault may be due.

"Bangladesh might be the team for him to do it against — he did it against us two years ago... he smacked it," said the coach, actually referring to Flintoff's three consecutive man-of-the-match performances against his team in late 2003. "He has got the ability, no question."

But so stiff has Flintoff been at the crease here that he might have been in the early stages of rigor mortis, and he has been among the batsmen struggling so much that a huge burden has been placed on Ian Bell, Kevin Pietersen and Paul Collingwood.

While Whatmore clearly wishes Flintoff well, he is looking forward to taking on a team riddled with weaknesses and did not mince his words when asked if England were vulnerable.

"The short answer is yes," said Whatmore. "The top order haven't been going that well, one bloke has been getting runs, and Kevin Pietersen is a good player... but the short answer is yes."

Defeat for England today could have far-reaching consequences, one of them being Duncan Fletcher either being sacked from his job or resigning.

Ironically, Whatmore was interviewed for the position when Fletcher was appointed in 1999.

Back then the process was so amateurish that Simon Pack, a friend of ex-ECB chairman Lord MacLaurin, who was given the job of running England affairs, greeted the dark-skinned coach of Sri Lankan heritage with a cheery "Morning, Duncan".

Whatmore would be among the outside contenders if a vacancy arose this year, but that is unlikely as an immediate result of today's game.

However much Bangladesh have improved from the side that was embarrassed in England two years ago, they really ought to be suppressed today.

The Kensington Oval pitch has a rock hard feel to it and the pace and bounce will favour Michael Vaughan's team — Flintoff will love bowling on it and even the presently impoverished skipper will fancy scoring some runs.

Bangladesh's triumphs over India and South Africa — two more than England have managed against major nations so far in the tournament — have come on the slower and lower pitches that suit them better.

All but captain Habibul Bashar are under the age of 25, and while it would be no surprise if they actually won a World Cup before England do, they are unlikely to move towards that today.

They do, however, possess a quorum of danger men who can take advantage if England revert to the ponderous and attritional style that has marked their performances against lesser nations.

Mohammed Ashraful is a potential match-winner who can live in the highest company, and Mashrafe Mortaza a pace-bowling all-rounder who could thrive in the expected conditions.

If England make any change after the defeats in Antigua against Sri Lanka and Australia it is likely to be Liam Plunkett for Sajid Mahmood, whose undisciplined lines were in evidence on Sunday.

One man completely secure in his place is Bell, England's one ever-present through this winter's wildly undulating fortunes. He gave an insight yesterday into why he seems to thrive when batting alongside Pietersen.

"We are completely different, I am much shorter than him and we hit the ball in different areas, which can be difficult to deal with," said Bell.

The Kensington Oval and surrounding area was an absolute shambles as they tried to get ready for this morning, but the ground has been impressively transformed with a pavilion that looks, from the outside, like a giant air-conditioner.

Sometimes this World Cup looks like it would have been a perfect fit for sponsorship by lastminute.com. England, too, are leaving it very late in the day to qualify for the last four.

AVERAGE ENGLAND

Andrew Flintoff's one-day batting average has slumped from 35 to 25 since Kevin Pietersen made his England debut and his average at this World Cup is a lowly 12.25.

Skipper Michael Vaughan has not scored a one-day halfcentury for 12 games — that's over two-and-a-half years.

WORLD CUP BATTING

K Pietersen 6 (innings), 66.20 (average)

P Collingwood 6, 54.25

P Nixon 5, 44.66

R Bopara 4, 37.33

I Bell 6, 34.00

E Joyce 5, 30.40

M Vaughan 6, 13.83

A Flintoff 4, 12.25

A Strauss 1, 7.00

Probable teams

ENGLAND: I Bell, M Vaughan (capt), A Strauss, K Pietersen, P Collingwood, A Flintoff, R Bopara, P Nixon (wkt), S Mahmood, J Anderson, M Panesar.

BANGLADESH: J Omar, T Iqbal, H Bashar (capt), S Hasan, M Ashraful, A Ahmed, M Rahim (wkt), M Mortaza, M Rafique, A Razzak, S Rasel.

Umpires: S Bucknor (WI), S Taufel (A).

3rd umpire: R Koertzen (SA).

Match referee: J Crowe (NZ).

TV: Sky Sports 1, 2pm (2.30pm start) then Sky Sports 3 at 7pm.