Skipper Rahane says India are not underestimating Zimbabwe

Rahane is ready to lead the India side

India’s embarrassing loss against Bangladesh was not very long ago, but Indian captain Ajnkya Rahane is adamant that the team has moved on. He insists that the Indian side is not taking Zimbabwe lightly, but they are here to win.

"Bangladesh is in the past now for us," Rahane said, according to ESPNcricinfo. "We're thinking about the present series and our plan will be to back our strengths and back our games, rather than looking at Zimbabwe's strengths. Give our best and play to our potential. We're here to win games."

Last time the Indian team were in Zimbabwe, they easily overcame the opponents. But that was in 2013, and the composition of this team is very different as a lot of frontline experienced players are missing.

"We all know that Zimbabwe is a good side," Rahane said. "They've been playing pretty well recently and we're expecting a good series here. The boys are looking forward to the series and we're not taking Zimbabwe lightly. We're respecting them, and respecting their cricket. We've got to play good cricket. Zimbabwe have got a pretty balanced side. They played pretty well in Pakistan, and they've good, experienced batsmen these days. Good all-rounders and bowlers. And they're getting better day by day. So we respect them, but at the same time we'll play our own cricket."

With the field restrictions in place, India will get a good chance to try out various permutations and combinations in a comparatively low-stakes game. Talking about his strategy for the series, Rahane said, "We have to wait and watch here, because it's the first game [with the new playing conditions]. After the first game we'll develop an idea about what sorts of strategies we need to use for the new rules. But it's quite exciting, with new fielding restrictions and free hits off all no-balls. It is very exciting, but we have to wait and watch how these new rules will go forward," he further added as reported by the website.

Rahane was dropped from the team playing against Bangladesh. For him, it will not only be an opportunity ot prove himself as a cricketer but also as a captain. He doesn’t have much experience captaining, as he only captained twice on senior level.

"It's a new challenge for me in my career. I'm looking forward to it. I normally visualize the situation when I play the game, whenever I get the opportunity to play. So I've brought a few ideas with me, and I've got my own style of captaincy, but I've learned a lot from Dhoni bhai under his captaincy. So I'm looking forward to bringing this talented bunch of guys here and doing well as a captain.

"In a positive way, it's a good opportunity for all of us to express ourselves. We're taking Zimbabwe very seriously. This is a good platform to showcase our talent here, do well at the international level. Everywhere we go, we take every opponent very seriously. We want to play our game and back our strengths."