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The conditions might be familiar for Bangladesh, but captain Najmul Hossain Shanto reminded his team-mates that they would have to excel in all three departments if they want to beat India in their opening match of the ICC Champions Trophy in Dubai today.

The game is scheduled to start at 3:00pm Bangladesh Standard Time and T Sports, Nagorik TV, and Toffee will televise the match live from the Dubai International Stadium.

Due to the political turmoil with Pakistan—the official hosts of the tournament—India will play all of their matches in Dubai, where the condition is not so dissimilar to the subcontinent.

‘I think we have to play well in all departments — batting, bowling, and fielding — because I think the way we played for the last few years in this format, I think we have a good side, and as you mentioned, the conditions are quite similar,’ Shanto told the reporters in Dubai on Wednesday.

‘I’m really confident that we will prepare ourselves well. I hope for the best for tomorrow’s match.’

One of the main concerns for Bangladesh leading into the tournament was the lack of match practice in the format, as they last played an ODI in December against the West Indies.

They also suffered a crushing defeat against the Pakistan Shaheens in their only warm-up game. However, Shanto thinks that that will not affect them at all.

He said, ‘It won’t have any effect because, as you said, we have seen a lot of things in the practice match. Everybody got a chance to bowl or bat. So, in general, it is for the sake of practice. So, I don’t think it will have much of an effect.’

Bangladesh last played against India in last year’s World Cup, where they lost by seven wickets. But before that, Bangladesh had three wins out of four against them, including a series win on home soil.

Shanto, though, didn’t want to ponder too much on the past ahead of today’s game.

‘Last year, when we played India in Bangladesh, we had some good memories from then,’ said the southpaw.

‘But that is past; I think if we play well tomorrow and execute our plan, we will have a good match tomorrow.’

Shanto also reiterated the fact that they had a balanced team and they were not thinking about the opposition.

‘Basically I think if you look at this format, our team is quite balanced, and we believe we can beat any team in this tournament,’ said Shanto.

‘All teams are capable of winning this trophy, but I am someone not thinking about the opponents much. If we can execute our plan properly, we can beat any team on any day.’

Despite Shakib Al Hasan not being there, the presence of some all-rounders as well as the bowling attack, especially the pace bowling unit, is also giving Shanto a lot of confidence.

‘I think we always struggle with our seam attack, but in the last couple of years we have got some quality fast bowlers. We have some fast bowlers, but now we have got Nahid Rana and Taskin the way they are bowling. I think it helps a lot,’ said the Bangladesh captain.

‘As a captain, we love to see bowling fast and bowling for the team. So, I’m really happy that we have got a good fast bowling unit, and under lights, the ball might swing. So, if they bowl in the good areas, it will help our team,’ added Shanto.

For quite some time, any match against India sparked something among the Bangladeshi fans, but Shanto remained unfazed on the issue.

‘Of course, there is a lot of excitement in India and Bangladesh,’ he said. ‘I think the players are not worried about this. They are focused on how to execute their plan.’