If the British weather plays ball and the summer sun stays over Britain, it will be short odds that the batsmen in this year’s Cricket World Cup will combine to break the record for most runs scored in the tournament.

There were 23,261 runs scored in Australia and New Zealand in 2015, but only five matches featured fewer than 100 overs due to the weather.

The Golden Bat winner from last time around, Martin Guptill of New Zealand, scored 547 runs four years ago and will be back to defend his crown but it’s worth noting he beat Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara by just six runs and the Sri Lankan superstar played two games fewer.

Sri Lanka made it only to the quarter-finals last year, which suggests a final berth is not essential to have a run at the title, while this year’s tournament structure makes things far fairer with each team playing each other once in the group stages.

So let’s take a look at the hotshots who will have spectators ducking for cover as yet another monstrous six makes its way over the boundary.

Virat Kohli 8/1

Kohli is ranked number one in the ICC’s Test and One-day rankings and has an average of just under 60 in this format. However, apart from scoring a century against Pakistan in the World Cup four years ago, he disappointed for much of the tournament. This time around plenty more can be expected.

Jonny Bairstow 10/1

Bairstow has scored 2,329 runs in his 57 one-day international innings at an average of 47.53, has formed a sparkling opening partnership with Jason Roy and recorded his seventh ODI century when he hit 128 off just 93 balls to help England to victory over Pakistan at Bristol this month. Bairstow’s big hitting meant he needed to change his bat three times during that match and willow trees across the country will have more reason than the wind to be shaking this summer.

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Joe Root 14/1

Root has made more than double the runs Bairstow has in ODIs and averages a shade above 50. Root has scored more ODI centuries than any other English batsman and joins Jonathan Trott as the only Englishman to average over 50 in this format. Did not score below 40 in four knocks against Pakistan in the recent ODIs and also hit a century in the previous series against the West Indies.

David Warner 14/1

Warner’s one-year ban for ball tampering handed out by Cricket Australia conveniently ended just in time for him to be eligible for World Cup selection and it will be interesting to see how spectators react to him and former captain Steve Smith through the course of the tournament. An aggressive left-hander with the ability to switch hit, Warner averages 43.4 after 104 ODIs and has been backed in recent weeks to capture this title.

Jason Roy 16/1

England’s other opening batsman comes into this tournament in fine form having hit a total of 277 runs in just three innings against Pakistan in the recent ODI series, including a century in the match at Trent Bridge. Roy averages a little over 40 in his ODI career but that fails to tell the whole story as he is averaging 47.62 in the last two years compared with an average of 34 previously. He could be overpriced for success at 16/1.

Rohit Sharma 16/1

Sharma has been named as India’s vice-captain for the World Cup and is nicknamed ‘The Hitman’. Last year, Sharma became the first cricketer to score four centuries in T20. Sharma has made a huge contribution to India over the last few years, scoring 8,010 runs in 200 innings at an average of 47.39. He has hit 22 centuries and 41 fifties during his ODI career and is the only batsman in history to score three double centuries in ODIs.

Kane Williamson 18/1

The New Zealand captain has been struggling with a shoulder injury during the latter stages of the IPL and has looked far from comfortable at times. The right-hander is undoubtedly his side’s best batsman and has an average of 45.9 in his 133 ODI innings. New Zealand finished runner-up to Australia in this tournament in 2015 and will probably have to go that deep again if Williamson is to figure this time.

Quinton de Kock 20/1

The shortest-priced South African in the betting market, De Kock is widely regarded as one of the best wicketkeeping batsmen in the world and has been compared to Australian legend Adam Gilchrist. Aged just 26, he has plenty of time on his side and he averages an impressive 45.6 in this format, higher than David Warner and Jason Roy.

Shikhar Darwan 20/1

India’s left-handed opener has a remarkable record if you only consider his performances in global tournaments such as the World Cup, Champions Trophy and Asia Cup. Darwan has an average of 63.34 in those tournaments, 19 points higher than his average in all ODIs. Darwan was named player of the tournament in the 2013 Champions Trophy, which was held in England, and was top scorer in the 2017 Champions Trophy, which was again held in this country. That love of English pitches makes him a key contender and he’ll be my each-way selection for glory.

Babar Azam 20/1

The youngest batsman among the top ten in the betting, Azam has the second-highest average behind Virat Kohli of 51.7 and showed his liking for English pitches by hitting scores of 16, 51, 15, 115 and 80 for Pakistan in the recent ODI series against England. His chance of winning, however, may be hindered by the lack of strength in depth in the Pakistan squad.