No Pietersen, no Flintoff, no chance - that is what even patriotic punters think of England's ICC Champions Trophy bid, according to Ladbrokes.

The Three Lions begin their campaign when taking on Sri Lanka in Johannesburg on Friday and have so far been friendless in the betting markets.

Andrew Strauss and Co are odds-on at 4/9 with Ladbrokes not to make it through to the knockout stages after being drawn in a group that also includes South Africa and New Zealand.

The same firm are offering 11/4 England lose in the semi-finals, 7/1 they finish as runners-up and 14/1 for a surprise victory in South Africa.

It is 2/1 they finish bottom of their pool, 11/8 for third place, 11/4 they qualify in second and 7/1 they top the table.

"At times like this we are usually inundated with patriotic punters wanting to back our boys but we've never seen such a lack of interest in them," said Ladbrokes spokesman Robin Hutchison.

"I'm sure every English cricket fan is praying for an upturn, but they are certainly not punting on it."