On the eve of what is being billed as a 'revenge' series against New Zealand, Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly sought to put the visitors on the backfoot, saying his young team had the potential to beat the opposition comprehensively.
Ganguly said his team bears no grudge against the Kiwis for its embarrassing defeats on seamer-friendly tracks in New Zealand last year, since it had already exacted revenge by beating them in the World Cup.
"We did not win the series in New Zealand when we toured there late last year," Ganguly told reporters at the Sardar Patel Stadium, venue of the first Test. "[But] we managed to beat them in the World Cup soon after. So it is now even.
"Now the bottomline is to win this series quite comfortably and we have the potential to beat them."
Commenting on the Motera track, which is likely to assist the batsmen on the first two days before slowing down gradually, Ganguly said he expects his side to make the most of it. "It looks like a very good Test match wicket," he said. "There is no reason why it should turn out to be otherwise.
"If you are good, you can play on any wicket," the skipper added.
India has already announced its side for the match, which will see the home team fielding two debutants -- opener Akash Chopra and paceman Lakshmipathi Balaji.
Ganguly said that in the absence of all-rounder Sanjay Bangar, it would be up to the part-timers to fill in the fifth bowler's slot. "Unfortunately we don't have Sanjay Bangar in the team for whatever reasons," the captain said. "So I along with Sachin [Tendulkar] and [Virender] Sehwag have to double up as the fifth bowler."
Bangar had also opened the Indian batting in the last seven Test matches.
Zaheer Khan and Balaji will open the bowling while the team will have two spinners in Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh.
Ganguly also had a word of encouragement for Bangar when he said, "He has done well for himself and he should consider himself unlucky. But I am sure he will work hard in future and make a comeback."
For New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming, the last home series win over India does not matter much since his side has come on a different mission -- to register its first series win ever in India.
"It [the last series win] does not play in our mind," Fleming said. "We will try to win the series here."
The astute captain is also unperturbed by the pitch, which could pose a few problems to his team during the next five days.
"It looks a good wicket," he remarked, "and I am sure we will put up a very good show.
"I would like to be the top run-getter, but we have talented players like Mark Richardson and Nathan Astle. They will grow in cofidence and come good with the bat as the series progresses."