As the ICC Champions trophy kicks off on Tuesday, South African fans will be hoping the Proteas can avoid the dreaded 'c' word this time around, writes iafrica.com?s Rob Peters.

The Proteas hold the number one rankings across the board; they also boast some of the best, and most consistent, players in world cricket, but what they do not have is a major ODI trophy to back it all up. In short, there is a rather large elephant in the Proteas dressing room.

Can Graeme Smith and his team shed the 'chokers' tag once and for all? We take a look at the ICC Champions Trophy and give our verdict.

The challengers:

Group A:

South Africa:

Traditionally, the favourites tag does not sit well with the Proteas, nor does playing at home under the pressure of the local fans. And while the current crop have proved they can cope with the mental aspect ? series wins in Australia and England testify to that ? they continue to come up short in the knock-out format.

Captain: Graeme Smith
Key players: Smith, Jacques Kallis, Dale Steyn, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy
Young guns: Wayne Parnell, Roelof van der Merwe

Sri Lanka:

Consistency is Sri Lanka's problem of late. They certainly are not lacking in the talent stakes, or in experience, but big losses to India recently will have dented their confidence ahead of the Champs Trophy. Their recent win over Pakistan is sandwiched between losses to the Indians and in a tough group in South Africa, they can ill afford inconsistency.

Captain: Kumar Sangakkara
Key players: Muttiah Muralitharan, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Mahela Jayawardene, Sanath Jayasuriya
Young guns: Ajantha Mendis, Upul Tharanga

New Zealand:

New Zealand begin the Champions Trophy on the back of some poor results, which have seen their ranking drop from fourth to sixth and left their confidence in tatters. While they will be buoyed by the return of veteran seamer Shane Bond, it will be the frequent batting collapses that are the chief concern for skipper Daniel Vettori. The Kiwis have always punched above their weight in the one-day format, but recent form suggests they will not last long in SA.

Captain: Daniel Vettori
Key Players: Shane Bond, Brendon McCullum, Jacob Oram
Young guns: Martin Guptil

England:

Fresh off the back of a 6-1 hammering at the hands of Australia, it is clear that England's ODI woes continue. And historically their form in knock-out tournaments does not make for pretty reading either ? particularly at the Champions Trophy, an event they have never won. Compounding their problems further is that they arrive in South Africa without the services of Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen, their two best players. It is difficult to see the English progress beyond the group stage.

Captain: Andrew Strauss
Key Players: Paul Collingwood, Stuart Broad, James Anderson
Young guns: Stuart Broad, Luke Wright

  • On page two we take a look at Group B and predict the tournament winner!