IAIN WARDLAW admits Joe Root’s wicket is the one he will be targeting when Scotland take on England in the cricket World Cup in Christchurch on Monday.

The ex-Yorkshire new-ball bowler is confident he and his Scottish team-mates can cause a shock, and he expects to have a bit of banter on-field with Root, a team-mate during the seamer’s two-year spell at Headingley from 2011 and 2013.

“I know Joe quite well,” said the 29-year-old. “We are friends, and I played a lot with him. I’m sure we’ll have a bit of a laugh and joke, and it would be brilliant to get him out.

“You always want to get one over on your friends, and there will definitely be a bigger smile on my face if I snick him off. When I started at Yorkshire, he was making that step from second to first-team cricket. It’s just escalated from there for him.”

Wardlaw and his team-mates go into Monday’s game hoping to recover from yesterday’s three-wicket defeat to co-hosts New Zealand, although the ex-Yorkshire bowler attracted some warm praise for his 3-57 as Preston Mommsen’s attack tried in vain to defend a modest 142.

Root and the England players take on New Zealand at Wellington on Friday and they will want to banish the mem - ory of their grim defeat to Australia before turn - ing their attention to the game against Scotland.

Wardlaw has little doubt that Root will be preparing for the match in his usual dedicated fashion.

“When I was at Yorkshire Joe was one of the hardest working guys out there,” he said. “He’d always be one of the last in the nets having throw downs, like all the guys at the top. He’s got the talent, and he has done tremendously well. I’m obviously pleased for him how his career’s gone so far.”

And despite losing their opening match, Scotland remain confident of turning England over.

“If we play well, we can beat them. We have a great opportunity,” said Wardlaw.

“After the game at Aberdeen in the summer, we knew we hadn’t played as well as we can do even though the conditions weren’t great and it was a condensed game.

“I really feel that if we play at the top end of our game, we can win. If we can control our emotions, it will stand us in good stead.”

England have struggled for consistency in limited overs cricket for a number of years, and there will be many with the opinion that Eoin Morgan’s side are there for the taking.

Wardlaw, however, stressed: “We don’t go into games looking at the other side’s form. We tend to concentrate on our own form. On the day, we can’t control how they are going to bowl or bat. We have just got to do what we can.”

One man who will know exactly what it takes to beat England is Scotland assistant coach Paul Collingwood.

Durham captain Collingwood led England to World Twenty20 glory in 2010 before moving into coaching as Scotland’s head coach at last year’s World Cup qualifying event in New Zealand.

“Colly’s been brilliant for us,” added Wardlaw. “You always want experience in your camp, people who have been there and done it at the very top."