Burns also spoke about the challenge of facing Jasprit Bumrah.
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Burns also urged the fans and experts to not put too much pressure on their spin duo of Dom Bess and Jack Leach, who will up against a formidable Indian batting line-up in the four-Test series.
“Honestly, I don’t think you need to put too much expectation on them. They will go about their business and they have bowled in Sri Lanka to get into the groove which is important and its about switching their skills on to Indian surfaces.
“I think they have both been here before on different tours with the Indian Lions, so they have experience of playing here,” Burns said during a virtual media conference on January 28, as quoted by PTI.
“But you don’t want to put too much expectation on them without knowing about the surfaces going to be and with Indian seam attack, it might be slightly seamer friendly, there is a Day/Night Test, so yeah it could be a bit different,” he added.
The southpaw also acknowledged that preparing for an unconventional bowler like Jasprit Bumrah is a difficult task.
“He’s quite hard man to prepare for, isn’t he? He’s obviously unique in terms of how he comes and bowls. We’ll just be working on those angles, try to work our way on seam and swing and those sort of things and try to replicate that as best as we can,” he said.
Burns missed England’s recently held two-Test series in Sri Lanka as he was on paternity leave.
Talking about his preparation, the 30-year-old said: “Homework? No, I have watched the India-Australia series, saw the most recent. No, I have played with a few other guys before, not in that respect, but I have played with them.”
A three-day practice is all the England team would get after rigorous six-day quarantine in Chennai and Burns admitted that the situation in a post-COVID world is challenging.
“Yes, it is obviously challenge, isn’t it? You know that is not much we can do about that schedule, it is what is placed in front of yourself and you waste time thinking about that and it is not going to be (beneficial),” he said.
“We have got three days now to put in our work and try and get used to conditions here on what we are going to face. It is just a mental switch really, like we saw Sibley’s from innings one to innings two in that last Test in Sri Lanka,” he further remarked.
Burns himself is still not sure of his place in the first XI with Zak Crawley and Dom Sibley also in the reckoning.
“I don’t know, it’s probably not a decision for me, is it? But I’m just looking forward to getting back and getting to work. But as I say, getting back in nets, me, Jofra (Archer) and (Ben) Stokes get a slight head start because of quarantine and those sort of things.
“But yeah, looking forward to having a couple of probably pretty tasty nets sessions with those two coming in at me and then getting back into work really.”
(With PTI inputs)