IND vs BAN: Why Bangladesh have tools and ingredients to open their account vs India in Chepauk Test?

IND vs BAN: Bangladesh's tour of India is just a week away from getting underway, with the first of the two-match Test series scheduled to go all guns blazing on September 19 at Chepauk. Meanwhile, the Tigers have a real chance to defeat India in the upcoming Test, and there are some reasons to believe they might open their account, for the first time.

Recently, when they toured Pakistan, nobody would have thought they would register their first-ever Test win over the hosts, let alone a whitewash. However, Bangladesh proved the doubters wrong by letting their performance do all the talking in the two games and deservedly swept the hosts under their carpet by 2-0.

Their historic whitewash has certainly boosted their confidence. Winning on foreign soil is not easy but Bangladesh handled it with ease against a strong Pakistan side. This goes to show that they are not the same team they used to be and are playing with a renewed sense of belief.

On the other end of the spectrum, Virat Kohli is returning to the team after a long break from Test cricket. He hasn't played a Test since early January when he featured against South Africa. He missed the five-match series against England due to personal reasons, whereas Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja last played a Test match in March 2024 against England.

Since then, India haven't played any Tests and perhaps, this lack of exposure to Test cricket could make the team a bit rusty, which Bangladesh might take advantage of.

Moreover, Chepauk is traditionally known for being a spin-friendly pitch and Bangladesh have the spinners to make the most of it. In their recent series win against Pakistan, Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Shakib Al Hasan played a crucial role. Bangladesh’s spin duo could put India’s batters under serious pressure on a turning track, if the batsmen are not fully settled after their long break from Test cricket.

Besides that, they are known to deliver the goods with the bat. On the other hand, Mushfiqur Rahim has been in fine form of late as he scored a match-winning 191 against Pakistan in Rawalpindi recently and so Bangladesh are not underdogs anymore as they are capable of taking down big teams.

Let's also not forget that during their previous encounter in Mirpur, Bangladesh came agonizingly close to defeating India. They lost by just three wickets in a tight match and that experience will give them even more confidence heading into this Test. They have shown that they can push India to the limit and maybe this time, they will come better prepared, learning from their past mistakes.