If Bangladesh hope to make the most of the Indian batters’ perceived weakness against spin, they better devise a different strategy.

Head coach Gautam Gambhir on Wednesday expressed confidence in his
batting unit’s ability to negate spin. India’s abject surrender to the Sri Lankan spinners in the last ODI series has provided credence to such assumptions.

“Our batting unit has so much quality that it can take on any spin unit. There is a lot of difference between ODIs and Tests. It’s all about the mindset and working and strengthening your defence and once you have it, then you play around it,” Gambhir told the media on the eve of the opening Test at the Chepauk.

The former Indian opener, himself an excellent player of spin in his playing days, conceded that Bangladesh have experienced and quality tweakers in their ranks.

“They have a very good bowling attack. Shakib (Al Hasan) has got the experience. Mehidy (Hasan Miraz) is there as well. So, we know that there is talent in Bangladesh. The important thing is that we need to be switched on from Day I.”

Gambhir accepted the fact that Bangladesh are coming off a brilliant Test series win in Pakistan but India will not take the visitors lightly.

“We respect everyone. We don’t take any opposition lightly. We are going to go
out there and play the brand of cricket that we want to playnbecause that is what champions do. They don’t look at the opposition.

“They try to control the game, they try to play the way they want to play the game.
So, congratulations Bangladesh for what they’ve done against Pakistan. But it’s a new start, it’s a new series, it’s a new opposition as well for them,” said Gambhir.

Not just batting, India’s balanced bowling unit is gradually wiping away a nation’s obsession with batting.

“You’ve got to give credit to (Jasprit) Bumrah, (Mohammed) Shami, (Mohammed) Siraj, (Ravichandran) Ashwin and (Ravindra) Jadeja. They’re turning this nation into a bowling-obsessed one.

“In fact, Bumrah is the best bowler in the world. It’s not just his performance. It’s his hunger as well. And the best part is that he wants to play as much Test cricket as he can. It is not even a luxury. He can make a difference at any stage of the game. So yes, hopefully, he can do the same in this series and going forward as well,” said Gambhir.

Spinners Ashwin and Jadeja will continue to play a massive role in the series considering their consistency and ability to pick 20 wickets.

“We know how they can contribute on Day I because potentially the most important thing is that you should have the ability to bowl defensive and you should have the ability to bowl attacking stuff as well. Both those guys can do that on Day I to Day V as well,” he said.

A red-soil pitch is on offer at the MA Chidambaram Stadium and while there could be considerable bounce and carry for both the quicks and spinners, the surface is likely to break in the searing Chennai heat. This means the spinners should come into play as the Test goes on.

It remains to be seen if India go with three spinners or play an additional pacer to partner Bumrah and Siraj.