For Rahul Dravid and his boys, the trip across the border was important to get the team back on track.
The dismal showing at the World Cup had critics slamming the team with every pass moment. And now after a good convincing performance against Bangladesh, though a modest team, it would have brought back some cheer to a few faces.
Even Dravid admitted the tour was important in terms of getting the confidence of his team back.
"The World Cup's happened. You can't look at something else to salvage something else. The past is behind us and there is nothing we can do about it," the Indian captain reasoned.
"We were here to play some good cricket. Get some rhythm, form, confidence back. I thought we did that. We played well in the one-dayers and the Tests. And we did it in tough conditions."
Even though he would not continue after the series, India's cricket manager Ravi Shastri said he was happy with the arrangement, which he described as a "honeymoon" and would rather let it remain that way.
"I like honeymoons anyway, the more the merrier," he declared in his usual exuberant style.
"The thing is I was very clear right from the outset that I would do this job because it was tough time for India. I was free, but I had my stand clear with the establishment that I was under a contract with ESPN-STAR who are my employers. Without their support, I don't think I would be doing this job. I am a professional, I believe in work ethics, I believe in contracts," Shastri added.
For Shastri, it was also a perfect birthday gift as the team won the second Test by an innings and 239 runs to win the two-match series 1-0.
"From the outset, I said very clearly I wanted to see the guys enjoy the game. The bottom line was team ethics. We might have 15 individuals in the team, before the individual, comes the team. In the first one-dayer we had 95 percent humidity. This game was tough, so I am happy by what I saw," the 45-year-old said.
India dominated throughout the second Test to win series. Sent in to bat first, India amassed a huge 610 for 3 declared before bowling out the hosts for 118 and 253 within the space of four sessions and 95.4 overs in total.
"It was a great effort on part of the bowlers to bowl 95 overs in these conditions. We used out the wicket really well. Having batted on it for a long time we figured out what line and length to bowl. That was important as the Kookaburra ball gets older, softer. We knew that the new ball was going to be critical. Getting it into the right areas was going to be very important as well. All our bowlers, especially Zaheer [Khan], did a great job," Dravid said complementing his bowlers.
The openers also got a vote of confidence from their captain after both Dinesh Karthik and Wasim Jaffer posted centuries. Dravid hinted that the pair would be ideal to open for India during the England tour next month.
"We'll get some chances to see them in the couple of side games when we go to England. They've given me confidence. Wasim Jaffer's comeback has been good for India.
"He's got some big scores, some low scores. The challenge for him would be to be consistent, put a string of good scores together, which is what a good opener should do. Dinesh, I think hasn't put a foot wrong in the last three games. He shows character, attitude, hunger, desire. He's already started thinking ahead about what the challenges are going to be in England."
The Karnataka batsman sought to downplay the triumph and said he is focused on the tougher tasks ahead.
"I don't get excited by most situations. My belief is to keep things in perspective whether it is victory or defeat. We will take some heart from this win, some positives. We know there are some tougher challenges ahead of us."
Though they were playing against Bangladesh, Dravid believes that they had to be focused at all times because a loss would have doubled trouble back home
"For us in some ways it was a lose-lose situation, wasn't it? Had we not done well, people would have said what's happening. Had we won, it's not a big deal. So it was tough in that sense. But we weren't focusing on that.
"We were just trying to get some batsmen in good form and try to see that the bowling came good. I think we've achieved that. Our heads are firmly on our shoulders."
The 34-year-old reiterated that this series would not have any bearing on the England tour coming up.
Dravid also sympathised with his Bangladeshi counterpart Habibul Bashar, whose decision to field first in the Test backfired horribly.
"There hasn't been a captain who has not looked back on a toss. I have been down that road too. As captain there are times when you think you could have done something differently. Hindsight is a beautiful thing.
"Habibul is not the first one to make a decision and wonder about it and won't be the last one. Obviously their decision gave us a great opportunity to pile on a big score and put them under pressure."
Dravid praised young pacer Ishant Sharma's showing in the match and predicted a bright future for him
"He was impressive. For a young kid with not many first-class games under his belt, he showed he's got the right attitude and has got the tools of the trade. Like Zaheer said, there is a good crop of young bowlers.
"RP Singh was a revelation on this tour. The two of them [RP and Ishant] might not even have got an opportunity if not for injuries. It enlarges our pool of fast bowlers and gives us an opportunity to try and keep most of them fit. In the season ahead we need all of them to be fit so that even if someone is injured the team is not affected that much," he concluded.
