India captain Rahul Dravid and coach Greg Chappell feel the upcoming tour of Pakistan would be as challenging as ever, as both the teams are well-balanced and in good form.
While it would be Dravid's first tour abroad as captain of the Indian team, Chappell would be visiting Pakistan after a long gap.
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Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, hours before the team's departure for Pakistan, he and Dravid were of the view that the contest between the neighbours would as keen as always and it would be wrong to identify any particular player from Pakistan for special attention.
Will a fitter Sohaib Akhtar be a threat to the Indian side?
"It would be wrong to target one or two players of the Pakistan side. They are a good side and they are playing well. It would be a keenly-contested series," Dravid said.
He did not agree with Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul Haq's statement that India would have the upper hand.
"I do not believe in whether one is favourite or the other is an underdog. It all depends upon how our players play on a particular day; how we play. That's what's going to matter," he said.
Dravid said he was lucky to have two proven world-class spinners in Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh in the side.
"They have had a good series [against Sri Lanka]. They are bowling well. It is good to have them in the side," he said.
Chappell though refused to compare the Indian pace attack with that of Pakistan's, saying, "It is not right to compare the bowlers. They all have different styles."
He declared that his process of experimentation would continue even in Pakistan.
"You call it experimenting, but we call it strategic moves. I want the team to be as flexible as possible. We had bad starts in the series against Sri Lanka, but the total was good enough as the lower order batsmen clicked. I would not say that the opening batting pair is cause for concern. We have three openers in the side and, hopefully, two of them should get going," he said.
Dravid said though he would be visiting Pakistan as captain, the pressure should not affect his batting.
"I would like to play my game as naturally as I can and not let the captaincy affect my batting," he said.
He clarified that he is not one of those captains who goes out of their way to help players who lack motivation.
"By and large the entire team is playing well. This is not the level where you could motivate people. You should have it automatically. If there are two or three persons in the side who cannot motivate themselves then I cannot do anything about it," he said.
