Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant on Thursday (September 5) made it clear that Team India won’t be taking Bangladesh lightly in the upcoming Test series.
Pant’s comment came days after Bangladesh completed a historic 2-0 Test series win in Pakistan. India are due to host the Tigers in two Test matches, starting on September 19 in Chennai.
India will play a total of 10 Tests in the next five months. The series against Bangladesh will be followed by three Tests against New Zealand at home in October-November and then five Test matches as part of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.
"Asian countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka perform well in Asian conditions because they are accustomed to the wickets,” Pant told Jio Cinema.
“As the Indian cricket team, we focus solely on our own standards and how we can improve. Regardless of the opposition, we strive to play with the same intensity and give our 100 percent every single day,” he added.
Pant said no series can be taken lightly with not much margins between the teams in international cricket.
"Pressure will always be there because in international cricket, you can't take any series lightly. The margin between winning and losing is very small, and nowadays, the gap between international teams isn't much either,” he remarked.
The opening round of Duleep Trophy 2024 matches got underway in Bengaluru and Anantapur on Thursday.
Performances in this domestic red-ball tournament will influence selections for the upcoming home Test matches against Bangladesh and New Zealand.
Rishabh Pant acknowledged that playing in the Duleep Trophy ahead of a long season of Test cricket will give the players quality match practice.
India’s leading cricketers, barring captain Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah and Ravichandran Ashwin, are featuring in the Duleep Trophy.
“It is very important for us to play domestic cricket because as a cricketer, match practice is always very important,” Pant stated.
“Especially coming back to domestic cricket, the youngsters also learn a lot of things from us — they see you playing here even after playing international cricket. There is a lot to give back to domestic cricket.”
“It also gives us the opportunity to share all the learning and experiences from international cricket with our colleagues, especially with the young players and newcomers; it gives them a huge boost since we all have reached here from playing domestic cricket,” he continued.
Pant, who is part of Team B in Duleep Trophy, said he was looking forward to getting back into domestic cricket as this is his first red-ball game after recovering from the horrific car accident.
“It is an amazing feeling for me, also because when I met with the accident two years ago, I used to always think about when I will be able to play for India again,” he said.
“In the last six months I (have) played IPL and we (have) also won the World Cup. It's a great feeling as I had always dreamt of winning the World Cup since I was a kid.”
(With PTI Inputs)
