India head coach Gautam Gambhir held a press conference ahead of the 1st Test match against Bangladesh, on Thursday, September 19 in Chennai.
While interacting with the media and reporters, the former India opener provided straightforward answers regarding the team's mindset and his approach to the upcoming Test cricket schedule until the end of the year.
Team India will play Test series against the likes of Bangladesh, New Zealand and Australia until the end of this year 2024.
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Gautam Gambhir press conference: What did India coach say about the team's approach of facing a 'confident' Bangladesh?
On the eve of the first Test match at Chennai, Gambhir stated this belief and approach to the sport, saying that the team doesn't "fear anyone, but we respect everyone."
"I have been big believer that we don’t fear anyone, but we respect everyone. It is the same with Bangladesh. We don’t look at the opposition and play the game we know."
For context, Gambhir was responding to a reporter's question about a statement that Bangladesh had made ahead of the Test series, in which they claimed that they were confident of challenging India in the two Test matches at Chennai and Kanpur.
Bangladesh who are rightly coming into the series on a high after beating Pakistan 2-0 in a series away from home at Rawalpindi, was notably a historic achievement.
Ahead of Bangladesh's visit to Pakistan, they were winless in Test matches against the hosts. However, with a strong squad of quality pacers, experienced spinners and determined batters, they pulled off a remarkable victory.
While Gambhir congratulated the opponent for the significance of their series victory against Pakistan, he acknowledged that this a new series and revealed that the Indian team will be on full alert throughout right from the first ball of the match.
"I congratulate them for what they did in Pakistan. But this is a new series, and they are a quality side, and we want to play good cricket. Yes, they have experience in Shakib [Al Hasan], Mushfiqur [Rahim] and Mehidy [Hasan Miraz] but we want to be switched on from ball one," he added.
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Have Bangladesh beaten India in Test cricket?
No, Bangladesh have never beaten India in Test cricket history. Since making their Test debut in 2000, they have only managed two draws at best against the Indians.
The two teams, India and Bangladesh, will face off against each other in a two-match Test series starting on September 19 and September 27, 2024.
| Matches | Won | Loss | Draw |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | 0 | 11 | 2 |
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