Batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has issued a warning to the Indian team ahead of the upcoming Test series against Bangladesh at home.
The Rohit Sharma-led side is due to play Bangladesh in two Test matches, starting on September 19 at Chepauk. The Tigers are coming to India on the back of a historic 2-0 Test series win in Pakistan.
Bangladesh have a history of pulling off surprises against India and giving them a scare in white-ball cricket. However, they are yet to defeat the neighbors in Test cricket.
When the two teams last played a Test series in December 2022, Bangladesh came close to beat India but Shreyas Iyer and Ravichandran Ashwin spoiled their dream.
No wonder, Gavaskar reckons Team India can’t be complacent against Bangladesh time around.
"By beating Pakistan in both the Test matches played in Pakistan, the Bangladesh team have shown that they are a force to reckon with. Even a couple of years back, when India toured Bangladesh, they were given a good fight by the Bangladeshis. Now with the series win against Pakistan under their belt, they are primed to take on India too," Gavaskar wrote in his column for Mid-Day.
"They have some fine players in their ranks and some new promising players who no longer have the awe of the opposition that seemed to characterise their early forays into the international game. Now, every team that play them know they can't put their guard down as they could be knocked down as the Pakistanis found out. It will certainly be a series to look forward to," he added.
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.
Team India could be well poised to earn a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final at Lord’s next year if they do well in home Test matches. India are currently heading the points table, followed by the defending champions Australia.
"India have 10 Test matches coming up over the next four and a half months and they need to win at least five of them to give themselves a good chance to qualify for the World Test Championship final. None of these Tests will be easy and so we could be in for an exciting summer of cricket," Gavaskar remarked.
