Strauss setting his sights on series whitewash over Australia

Andrew Strauss's reinvigorated team had to dig deep at Old Trafford to scramble the winning runs they needed to go 3-0 up, eventually getting home by a solitary wicket.

Nonetheless, having previously been coy about the prospect of winning every match against the old enemy this summer, an emboldened Strauss has dared to voice the ambition publicly to complete the sequence with wins at The Oval and Lord's this week.

Should England do so, it will be significant revenge for last September's 6-1 home defeat by Australia in the corresponding series – and it would take their run of one-day international victories against all opposition to 10 out of 10.

Some are contending that it will give them a major psychological advantage over Australia for next winter's Ashes.

Strauss does not buy that but is enthused about England's prospects in a sub-continental World Cup early next year.

"I don't think we can read much into the Ashes in such a radically different format of the game," he said.

"But for the World Cup, I think a 5-0 victory would instil us with a huge amount of confidence.

"We're aiming for it – we're in a great position to do that now. We don't want to take our foot off the gas."

Strauss's 87 carried England to the brink of victory on Sunday, when success provided some consolation for a nation so disappointed by their team's undignified exit from the football World Cup at the hands of Germany.

The captain was following up a half-century in the win at Cardiff and has gone a long way already to silencing those who have suggested he is not worth his place in the one-day team as an opening batsmen.

If there are any concerns for England, though, they must surround two significant wobbles with victory in sight – first at the SWALEC Stadium and, more dramatically, at Old Trafford.

They had moved into an impregnable position both times, only to lose three late wickets for 19 in Cardiff and then a calamitous six for 18 in Manchester.

But Strauss is not worried, disagreeing with his opposite number Ricky Ponting's suggestion that England may be a little light on frontline batsmen.

"The specialist batters have done a pretty good job up to the 40-over mark," he said.

"The challenge is just to get the job done in those last 10 overs. I don't think we've been that exposed, other than being the architects of our own downfall in the back-end of the game.

"It's just a case of us taking responsibility a bit more and making sure we're not out at the end to see the boys home."

Strauss can speak with confidence about his own form but knows he needs to keep producing, just like everyone else.

Among England's bowlers, Graeme Swann rightly took the plaudits on Sunday for his four wickets – albeit on a spinner's pitch – and Strauss also had high praise for James Anderson.

The Lancashire fast bowler was insecure about his position in England's limited-overs attack, after being dropped from the first-choice team that won the ICC World Twenty20 last month.

Ian Bell and Yorkshire's Ajmal Shahzad have joined England Lions for the match against West Indies A at Northampton today.