Sam Billings says that England are “quietly confident” as they prepare to kick off their World T20 campaign against the West Indies on Wednesday.

The Kent wicket-keeper batsman, 24, was named in England’s 15-man squad for the tournament in India after catching the eye with his limited-overs performances in recent seasons.

Billings has made 11 international appearances so far, making his debut in June 2015 as England sought to play a higher-tempo, more attacking and inventive limited-overs game.

Billings has also been snapped up in the IPL auction, where he will feature for the Delhi Daredevils.

“It will be a surreal experience”, Billings said of featuring for his country in the World T20.

“I think we’re quietly confident. As long as we’re fresh, and get to where we need to be, I think we’ll be fine. I can’t wait – it should be fantastic.

“Obviously the Ashes is probably number one, but the next biggest is definitely a World T20 in India, so I’m really looking forward to it.”

Billings is just one of a number of young players in the England T20 setup, with the squad put together to produce exciting, attacking cricket, following a lean period for England’s limited overs sides.

“As a group, it’s a fantastic squad”, Billings said of his teammates. “We’ve grown up together. Stokesy [Ben Stokes], Jos [Buttler], Rooty [Joe Root], Vincey [James Vince] – I think we started playing against and with each other in under-13s.

“It’s pretty surreal, really, [playing with] all your mates. I think that’s how it’s perceived on TV – as a group of lads, enjoying themselves, playing the way they want to play cricket, and the way the game’s moved forward.

“Hopefully we can continue the momentum we’ve had in the last few months, and no doubt, we’ll give it our best shot in India.”

The Pembury-born batsman also made it clear that England were not heading out to India to simply make up the numbers, and that they were confident of progressing into the tournament’s later stages.

“You’ve got to believe”, he said. “If you look at our batting line-up, we’ve got some ridiculous talent in there. Jos Buttler is as good as any on the world stage. Morgs [Eoin Morgan], Rooty, Stokes, [Alex] Hales, [Jason] Roy – the list goes on!

“Vincey’s not even playing and he was man of the series in the Pakistan series. It’s a squad full of depth, so who knows. We’d like to be confident, but obviously it’s one game at a time, and we’ll give it our best shot.”