Cricket World Cup 2007 : Top 20 World Cup Stars

1 : Glenn McGrath ( Australia )

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The outstanding pace bowler of his generation has his last chance to prove the point before he retires at the end of Australia's bid to win a third successive World Cup. The metronomic and still occasionally menacing McGrath was central to his country's last two successes - and he will be trebly determined to do it all over again.

2 : Mitchell Johnson ( Australia )

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Left-arm pace bowler Johnson has been unable so far to convert the promise which first struck the likes of Australia greats Dennis Lillee and Rod Marsh at the start of the 21st century. He remains an exciting prospect, though - and if he can stay fit the tall Queenslander can make an impact at the World Cup ... before setting his sights on a Test career.

3 : Andrew Symonds ( Australia )

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Symonds' all-round ability is second to very few - as English cricket fans will know from his batting, bowling and fielding exploits with three counties, as well as in Australian colours in the 2005 NatWest Series and winter 2006/07. Birmingham-born Symonds was never seriously tempted by the prospect of playing for England - much to the detriment of a country currently short on potential match-winners.

4 : Mike Hussey ( Australia )

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The left-hander had to wait an outrageously long time for his main chance at the highest level - but he wasted no more sparing the selectors' blushes for keeping him out in the cold so long. Hussey immediately developed a reputation as a one-day finisher in the Michael Bevan mould. But he is much more than that, adept at Graham Thorpe-like manipulation into gaps in both forms of the game and increasingly the glue the Aussies need in the middle overs.

5 : Cameron White ( Australia )

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White is yet another Aussie - a fifth, even without the most obvious of the lot Ricky Ponting - who gets star billing, giving a fair indication of how far the world champions are ahead of the rest. Much like Hussey before him, White first hinted he may be a superstar in waiting by out-classing county championship opponents. That was for Somerset last summer, after he had been signed as a leg-spinner who could bat but soon proved his strongest suit was very much the latter. White has since shown he has a range of stroke - and time to play - which sets him apart from most.

6 : Mahendra Singh Dhoni ( India )

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India's glamour-boy wicketkeeper-batsman is one of a clutch of international cricketers intent on raising the bar when it comes to plundering huge runs in the late stages of one-day games. The right-hander produces a bizarre flourish at the end of unfeasible big hits as the ball sails beyond the furthest boundary in which ever direction he has chosen. He lives on the edge of early dismissal in most innings - but if he is in for 10 minutes or more the opposition and most of the crowd ought to consider donning a suit of armour.

7 : Suresh Raina ( India )

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Raina is another who has already shown England what he can do - and the 20-year-old left-hander may be about to come of age early in the Caribbean. He displayed great maturity as well as high class with successive half-centuries against Andrew Flintoff's hapless one-day tourists last year - before an anti-climactic Champions Trophy on home ground. Raina is very good already ... but is sure to get even better.

8 : Herschelle Gibbs ( South Africa )

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Gibbs� arrival in India last autumn for the Champions Trophy was much-anticipated, not just because he is one of the world�s outstanding top-order strokemakers but because he had never received an assurance he would not be detained for questioning over the Hansie Cronje match-fixing scandal. With that awkward situation behind him, the time may be right for Gibbs to show off the best of his renowned abilities with the bat and in the field.

9 : Lasith Malinga ( Sri Lanka )

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The �slinger� still has the element of surprise on his side. Fast bowler Malinga is also capable of unexpected accuracy when on song - and could have a few big-name batsmen on their way back before they have worked out what they are up against.

10 : Muttiah Muralitharan ( Sri Lanka )

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Murali was the first man in cricket history to 1,000 international wickets - and now his great rival Shane Warne has vacated the Test as well as the one-day stage, the master off-spinner can go in search of still more victims as he sets the standard for a world-beater from a future generation.

11 : Chris Gayle ( West Indies )

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Gayle's inscrutable demeanour means his true personality is always likely to remain something of a mystery to most. But there is nothing secret about the way he approaches his batting. One-day cricket allows the adventurous left-hander to give full rein to his attacking instincts, and the slow surfaces which can be expected on home ground should allow him to set himself to punish anything loose from the outset.

12 : Brian Lara ( West Indies )

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Lara is imperious, ingenious and peerless when at the top of his form. Even when he is some way short of that pinnacle, the Trinidadian master batsman is still world class. A huge amount rests on his shoulders this spring - personally, for West Indies and for world cricket. The game needs West Indies to be competitive in their own World Cup, and Lara needs to prove his team can mix it with the best before he concludes an outstanding career which has spanned an era when the Caribbean's cricket love affair cooled.

13 : Ramnaresh Sarwan ( West Indies )

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Ted Dexter, no less, predicted after Sarwans eye-catching Test debut that he would go on to record a career average of 50 plus. The West Indies vice-captain is currently running a little under that level in five-day cricket but is much closer in the one-day game. If the Windies are to be competitive this time, cultured batsman Sarwan is one of the men who must lead the way.

14 : Jerome Taylor ( West Indies )

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It is 20 years since the Windies pace attack truly terrorised world cricket - although Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh were not a bad pairing from the last generation. Ever since, West Indies have been searching in vain for someone to emerge as a credible replacement for those two or for the likes of Malcolm Marshall, Andy Roberts, Michael Holding et al. Finally in 22-year-old Taylor, it seems they may have done so. India were certainly suitably chastened by him as he gave them an uncomfortable hurry-up last year.

15 : Mohammad Yousuf ( Pakistan )

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Yousuf is a bona fide member of an elite clutch of batsmen at the top of the world in both forms of cricket. His rivals include compatriot and captain Inzamam-ul-Haq, Brian Lara, Sachin Tendulkar, Mike Hussey, Ricky Ponting, Jacques Kallis and - occasionally - Kevin Pietersen. If any is as reliable as Yousuf it would have to be Hussey or Kallis; more often than not the best chance of getting rid of him, or for that matter Inzamam, is to hope he runs himself out.

16 : Shoaib Akhtar ( West Indies )

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Reprieved, like his pace partner Mohammad Asif, after the Pakistan Cricket Board controversially overturned a long-term ban for a positive drugs test. On the assumption he remains clear to take his place this spring, fast bowler Shoaib will be one of the biggest draws of the World Cup - as he is whenever and wherever he plays. His new-ball spells are pure theatre, no-one sure whether the mood will push him to outright pace and hostility or cannier methods. Shoaib is adept at both, and if he goes through his repertoire of slower deliveries - which can occasionally end up as unintentional beamers or near unplayable, looping yorkers - only the batsmen will be complaining.

17 : Shahid Afridi ( Pakistan )

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Another 'joker' from the Pakistan camp. Afridi can out-hit even Mahendra Singh Dhoni, or he can miss a straight one and leave the crowd feeling robbed of their rightful fun. Even mishits can clear the ropes, such is Afridi's bat-speed - and in a matter of minutes, he can turn a par score into something unchasable. His brisk wrist-spin is a second-string ability which can occasionally bemuse the opposition.

18 : Kevin Pietersen ( England )

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England are short on cricketers who can turn a game, especially in the one-day format. The mercurial Pietersen is one, though - and if his team are to make a credible challenge they will need either him or Andrew Flintoff to produce his best. Pietersen has an unorthodox, over-reaching technique all of his own - defying physics by somehow retaining his balance, timing, placement and power when it looks for all the world as if he is about to fall over.

19 : Andrew Flintoff ( England )

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A fit Flintoff is an asset to any side in the world. If the all-rounder's ankle allows he can bowl almost as fast as anyone - and if he finds his form with the bat he can hit the ball as far as anyone. Should he fire on both fronts, England could yet surprise one or two in the Caribbean - but if he and Pietersen are off colour it is hard to see where the inspiration could come from.

20 : Elton Chigumbura ( Zimbabwe )

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Chigumbura is potentially another significant talent among the minnows. More Andrew Flintoff than Shahriar Nafees, the all-rounder hits emphatically down the ground, has pace with the ball - and is young enough to be capable of plenty more significant progress, as long as the struggles of his largely outclassed team-mates do not drag him down.