England will face reigning champions Australia in their World Cup semi-final and I think it’s the perfect semi-final for any Englishmen or Australian.

For us, I think it’s also vital to stay away from India, who play New Zealand in the other last-four tie today, because they are playing the most consistent cricket out of anybody.

Of course, the Australians are a good side, but their middle order can be a bit fragile. With Usman Khawaja ruled out of the tournament with a hamstring injury, they have brought Matthew Wade into the team.

Wade is actually in good form, and he is playing well, but a World Cup is a very different type of environment to come into straight away.

Alex Carey has impressed of late, too. He is a class act.

Naturally, I’m sure both teams will be in good form and confident mood, ahead of the clash at Edgbaston on Thursday. But I still think we have more quality man-for-man and I think we have enough quality to get over the line, I really do.

If England are in it, the World Cup final will be broadcast on free-to-air television in the UK and that’s exactly what cricket needs.

That’s what we need to do in this country. We have to get more kids, and more families, watching big and important games of cricket.

We saw the ripple effect of what the 2005 Ashes did in terms of getting youngsters involved in the game. For me, it’s no coincidence the greatest series ever helped to attract more children to get involved in cricket, with the series having been shown on terrestrial TV.

Those 45 and over can probably remember “The John Player League” when one match each week was broadcast in full on BBC Two.

That was something to look forward to and, for many cricket fans, it was the highlight of the week.

Now, the younger generation haven’t had that. And we owe it to them.

Australia beat England by 64 runs when the two sides met in the group stages, but I’m not sure that will have much of a bearing on the semi-final.

If you are in the semi-finals, you should be in confident mood, and you are now only two matches away from winning the whole World Cup. That should be every players’ mindset now.

Ultimately, you just want to qualify for the semi-final. It doesn’t really matter how you get there, you just want to make sure you qualify for it.

When you play matches at the latter stages of the tournament, you want your senior players to stand up. Anybody can be a match winner.

With the amount of cricket they play now, every player in the England side is very experienced. It’s now all about who performs on the day, gets into the right routines and executes the correct skills. Those will be the people who are going to be successful.

Even though it’s a semi-final, it’s another game of cricket. There will be a lot of adrenaline pumping through your body, but it’s about who can go away from that and just make it another day of cricket and just stay calm. It’s the players who stay calm who help pull their team through on a day like that.

Up front, the Australian batsmen have started well, so it will be crucial that we take some early wickets. David Warner is in good form, and his opening partner Aaron Finch can be deadly, as well.

They can take apart any bowling attack. But England will be looking at their weaknesses. You need to tuck Warner up for room, you need to use the high bouncer to him. And you can nick Finch off early.

We have the armoury and we have the X-Factor. This is where the likes of Jofra Archer needs to step up and help to get the Aussies three or four wickets down inside the first 15 overs. Then, it’s game on with the odds in England’s favour.

India will face New Zealand in the other semi-final. I still think India haven’t got out of second gear yet.

I think they have been that good. For me, their batting has been incredible. People know they are always disciplined with the ball. India is the side that everybody wants to keep away from.

Against Australia, I can see the crowd being the 12th man for England because there will be so many more English supporters than Australian ones.

But, if India make it to the final, I can see it being a sea of blue shirts. However, I’m sure New Zealand will back themselves to spring a surprise and get the better of the Indians.

New Zealand’s batting hasn’t quite fired on all cylinders in the way it can at this World Cup. Martin Guptill hasn’t been his usual, world-class, self. Colin Munro and Ross Taylor both also have so much more to give.

They have dangerous cricketers. But only really Kane Williamson has performed on a consistent basis for them. He is their glue and he has been the difference.

But on the day, if there is a little bit in the wicket at Old Trafford, New Zealand have the armoury to take wickets, with Trent Boult and Matt Henry.

Boult is high class and Henry is used to taking wickets. Lockie Ferguson can be deadly, too, but New Zealand haven’t been as consistent as they would have liked.

I’m sure they will still believe they can reach the final, though.