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The cricket World Cup is just around the corner and England have been named as the favourites according to Paddy Power. England have finished as the runner-up on three occasions, but are yet to win cricket’s biggest prize.

This year’s tournament provides England with the perfect opportunity to end their drought of World Cup wins, especially as they are hosting the competition. Eoin Morgan is England’s captain and will be hoping to achieve what no other England captain has ever achieved before – winning the cricket World Cup.

Morgan is just the latest of a long line of great England cricket captains, and we’ve taken a look at some of the best.

Nasser Hussain

The Essex cricket club legend made his mark on the England national team when he was named as the test captain in 1999. England won 17 test matches with Hussain as captain, putting him in fourth place on the list of England captains with the most test match victories.

Nasser Hussain was part of the 1999 England cricket World Cup squad, although it wasn’t until after the tournament that he became captain. His only World Cup as captain saw England eliminated in the group stage of the tournament, primarily due to the fact that England refused to play Zimbabwe due to safety concerns.

By refusing to play Zimbabwe, England lost by walkover and it was Zimbabwe who finished above them in the table, knocking them out.

Although Hussain may have been the captain during a disappointing World Cup campaign, he is no doubt one of the best England had and the team certainly saw a boost when he took over the role.

Graham Gooch

In 1989, England lost the Ashes series 4-0, resulting in the resignation of David Gower as full-time captain. In stepped Graham Gooch to take over and make the role his own. He had previously been captain, but had not been named as the full-time captain.

Although England weren’t at their most dominant during Gooch’s tenure, they did pick up some impressive test wins against India, Sri Lanka and the West Indies.

A true leader, Gooch set an example to his teammates, often having a batting average that was almost double that of the rest of the team. It was his leadership that secured England a runner-up place in the 1992 World Cup, and the third one in England’s history. Close to success, but not quite close enough.

Michael Vaughan

As captain of the England team, Michael Vaughan led the team to a historic Ashes victory in 2005. It was the first time in 18 years that England had won the Ashes and it was arguably the biggest moment in his career.

He was first named captain in 2003, a year in which he was statiscially one of the best batsmen in the world. During his time as captain, Vaughan suffered a huge dip in form, which fortunately didn’t affect the 2005 Ashes result.

One of his best traits was his calmness, even when the match looked to be lost. His refusal to panic helped reassure the team and ensured that they were able to rescue results which looked impossible to achieve.

Vaughan has even given his backing to the current England squad and believes that it is “the best opportunity in my time” to see England win the cricket World Cup.