At home, India is a dangerous side: Shakib Al Hasan

Before coming to India for a limited overs series, the Aussies had to tackle Bangladesh last month in the longer format. While they did manage to level the Test series, the host side posted a historic win against Steven Smith’s men in the first Test.

And Shakib Al Hasan who was the biggest contributor in that win for Bangladesh feels that after that Test series, Aussies came to India reeling under the pressure to perform in the subcontinent. “India always had the upper hand, because the Australians came to India as underdogs,” Shakib told Sportstar during an exclusive chat from Dhaka on Tuesday.

The star Bangladeshi cricketer and the skipper of the country’s T20 side, feels that India ‘just needs to ensure’ that there is no batting collapse.

“Look, India has a very good bowling line-up, which looks in real good shape. It just needs to ensure that there is no slip-up in the batting. Once that is taken care of, there’s no reason for India to worry,” Shakib said, pointing out that India’s diverse bowling options would help the host dominate regardless of the conditions.

“At home, India is a dangerous side. There’s not much I can tell them (the Indian players) because I know they already have a proper plan, and the way in which Hardik (Pandya) helped the side bounce back in Chennai the other day, it speaks volumes for their resilience,” Shakib, who is undergoing a break from Test cricket, said.

Indian bowling unit getting praise all around the world

Regarded as one of the most destructive all-rounders in the world, Shakib, also said, “Actually, there are so many match-winners in India that it should never be a problem for the team to turn things around.”

The 30-year-old says that India has one of the best fast bowling attacks in the world now and could trouble even the likes of Australia, more so with the added advantage at home. He also brought into fore Australia’s much talked about the terrible record in the subcontinent.

“All of them are so good that they can deliver on any kind of wicket. They should just keep that going. It is tough to say how to keep the Aussies under pressure. But their record in the Asian countries hasn’t been impressive. They lost in Sri Lanka, in Bangladesh. So, India should make the most of it and tighten the noose,” Shakib Al Hasan aid, hoping that India would maintain the winning run.