Jonny Bairstow insists England have the batting firepower to blow away World Cup rivals… and they don’t need to rely on return of talisman Ben Stokes from injury

• England face South Africa in must-win encounter in Mumbai on Saturday
• England have lost two of their opening three games at the World Cup 
• Head coach Matthew Mott has called for more assertive use of the powerplay 

Jonny Bairstow has insisted England still have the batting firepower to intimidate opponents at the World Cup – and promised they won’t be relying on the return of Ben Stokes to give their title defence the oomph it needs.

When England meet South Africa in Mumbai on Saturday, both will be licking wounds – England after their defeat by Afghanistan, South Africa after Tuesday’s even more surprising loss to the Netherlands in Dharamshala. For both sides, victory at the Wankhede is non-negotiable.

And the onus will be on Bairstow to give his team the kind of start that four years ago was their white-ball calling card.

His own World Cup, like England’s, keeps threatening to ignite without yet catching fire: 33 off 35 balls against New Zealand, 52 off 59 against Bangladesh, then two off four against Afghanistan, when he was sent on his way by a marginal lbw decision from umpire Rod Tucker, whom Bairstow later acknowledged with a civil but taciturn handshake. ‘The decision the other day was the decision the other day,’ he deadpanned.

But he has now set his sights on a South African attack whose pace-bowling bias may play to his strengths. Above all, he believes England have shed none of the aura which has made them the only men’s team to simultaneously hold both limited-overs World Cups.

Jonny Bairstow has insisted England still have the batting firepower to intimidate opponents

Jos Buttler’s side were handed one of their most humiliating defeats of all time by Afghanistan

Bairstow was given out by Rod Tucker before a review showed it was umpire’s call for both line and impact on the wickets

‘I don’t really think much has changed, has it?’ he said. ‘Look at the strength in depth in our batting line-up. I don’t think the firepower can be questioned. It’s just that we haven’t executed it.

‘There’s a reason why the guys won the T20 World Cup last year. There’s a reason why the guys won the 2019 World Cup and we’re the defending champions. Just because we’ve lost a game to Afghanistan doesn’t make us bad cricketers.’

Matthew Mott suggested on Tuesday that England’s confidence has taken a hit, and scores of 282 for nine, 364 for nine (when they ought to have made 400) and 215 appear to back him up. But while the head coach called for more assertive use of the powerplay – with both bat and ball – Bairstow tempered expectations.

‘I don’t see anyone else in the world scoring at nine runs an over,’ he said. ‘Look at India: they don’t just go balls to the wall in the first 10. The importance of the first 10 is to score quickly, yes, but also score in a way that’s sustainable over a long period of time. We’re not playing a T20 game, we’re playing a 50-over game.’

The mixed messages may reflect Bairstow’s attempts to adjust to his new opening partner, Dawid Malan, who tends to chew up balls early in his innings, even if he is capable of serious acceleration later on, as he confirmed against Bangladesh.

And the feeling persists that England won’t be able to puff out their chests, as Mott put it, until Stokes is back on the field – even if casting him in the role of saviour is a narrative his team-mates prefer not to dwell on.

‘Any side that has a performer like Ben coming back in, it’s naturally going to have an impact,’ said Bairstow. ‘At the same time, it’s not necessarily a one-man side, and everyone’s got to to perform better than we did in the last game.’

In theory, England v South Africa brings together the two biggest-hitting teams of modern times. All 25 totals above 400 ever made in ODI cricket have come since 2006, with South Africa the only side to make more than England – eight to their five, including a World Cup-record 428 for five against Sri Lanka in this tournament.

Yet the talk going into Saturday’s game is of frailties exposed and vulnerabilities to exploit. Bairstow, naturally, can see no ‘wobbles’ in the England camp, but was guarded in his praise of their opponents.

England head coach Matthew Mott has called for more assertive use of the powerplay

England will hope the return of Ben Stokes can kickstart their World Cup title defence

‘We know they’re a strong nation and they’ve been playing well,’ he said. ‘But we also know now they’re coming off a loss as well.’

Despite what Mott said, is there still a confidence in England’s dressing-room that they can win a third World Cup in four years?

‘Yeah, absolutely there is,’ said Bairstow. ‘The group remains calm. Belief and confidence isn’t something that’s been questioned one bit. The confidence is unwavering.’

It’s not long now before the words will have to translate into action.

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