Tigers focused on process, not outcome

In the pre-match press conference ahead of the opening Test against India in Chennai yesterday, Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto was asked whether their historic 2-0 away series victory against Pakistan recently has added some pressure on the team as part of heightened expectations from the fans and experts.

Having won the first Test by 10 wickets, Bangladesh fought back from 26-6 and eventually went on to win the second Test by six wickets against Pakistan in Rawalpindi, something that is certain to boost the confidence of the team ahead of the challenging India series.

It seemed as if Shanto was prepared for such questions, and the Bangladesh skipper deflected the conversation by focusing on what lies ahead instead of dwelling on what happened in the past, even if that is very recent past.

"I think we played very good cricket against Pakistan. And that is past. As you have mentioned, that gave us a lot of confidence but we are here to play a new series," Shanto said.

"The dressing room believes that we can play very good cricket here. We are not thinking about the outcome. We are trying to follow our processes," he added.

Bangladesh had, in the past as well, carried some confidence when facing up against India but crumbled under the pressure of expectations on many occasions. The Tigers had in fact ran their next-door neighbours close on quite a few occasions in different formats over the last few years, the latest of which came in 2022 when they nearly pulled off their maiden Test win against their neighbours in Mirpur.

Needing 145 runs for victory in the last innings, the visitors were reduced to 74-7 before an unbroken eighth-wicket partnership of 71 runs between Ravichandran Ashwin (42 not out) and Shreyas Iyer (29 not out) bailed out India and caused heartbreak for Bangladesh.

The Tigers are still searching for their maiden Test win against their neighbours after playing 13 Test matches, losing 11 times and drawing only twice, those too courtesy of rain.

Shanto claimed that the current Bangladesh team have matured enough to handle pressure and not let emotions get the better of them in crucial situations.

"I think it's because a lot of the players have been playing for the last 10 to 15 years. Most of the players are experienced. That's why we haven't got much emotional in the last couple of years," he said.

"We can control our emotions now. We are thinking about our game, not thinking about like what will happen if we lose or win. We just try to give 100 percent in every single match. That's why I think it looks very calm and just follow every single plan.

The 26-year-old batter showed enough respect to the opposition despite making it clear that they were thinking more about their own game rather than the opposition and conditions.

"I think they are a quality side and we all know that. I think they covered all the bases like batting, bowling and fielding," Shanto said. "But we aren't thinking about the condition and the opponent to be very honest. We are just thinking about ourselves. If we can follow our plan and execute our plan, it will be a very very good game."

"Obviously, we have a very experienced spin-bowling attack. But I think in the last couple of years, we have very good pace bowlers as well. I know they are not that much experienced but they are capable to do. I'm not thinking too much about spin and pace bowling. Whatever the condition gives us, we will [try to] adapt that and I hope players will adapt very quickly and they will do good for the team," the Bangladesh skipper concluded.