BRIDGETOWN, Barbados – Narsingh Deonarine said he was looking to make his first trip to Bangladesh a memorable experience.
The West Indies left-hander said he was excited about the prospects after learning that conditions were similar to his native Guyana, and wanted to prepare well to meet any challenge that he may face on the tour.
"This is the first time that I will be going to Bangladesh and I am trying to learn from the guys that have been there previously," he told WICB Media.
"Most of the guys that have been there previously tell me that the conditions are similar to back home [in Guyana] – it is very hot and the pitches are flat, on the low side, and slow. I am looking forward to the challenge."
Deonarine has played just 14 Tests since he made his debut seven years ago, but the 29-year-old became a valuable member of the side during the previous six months following a strong season in the Regional 4-Day Tournament.
Both his left-handed batting and part-time off-spin contributed significantly to healthy and – at times – winning positions for West Indies in Tests during the period, and this has helped his confidence.
"I have been performing year in, year out in the Regional 4-Day Tournament and I have gotten another chance," he said.
"I’ve been selected for a couple series now and I performed against New Zealand, so hopefully I can perform much better with bat and ball in Bangladesh."
Deonarine said one of the challenges he had to overcome was not playing a lot of high-level, competitive matches.
He was not a member of the winning squad at the ICC World Twenty20 Tournament and he said being restricted to just Tests can sometimes have its drawbacks.
"Sometimes it can be hard, but it’s mind over matter," he said. "You have to talk to yourself and tell yourself that you’ve been selected to play Tests and you can only play to the best of your ability.
"I am happy for whatever chance that I have been given to play for West Indies, but I am also working hard to also earn a place in the limited-overs formats of the game.
"The guys have told me what type of pitches to expect in Bangladesh – and that they can be very difficult at times – so I will have to work a lot on my technique against spin bowling before we reach there to be able to be successful."
West Indies face Bangladesh in two Tests from November 13 to 17 at the Sher-e-Bangla Stadium in that country’s capital of Dhaka, and from November 21 to 25 at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium in the south-western city of Khulna.
The Tests will be followed by five One-day Internationals and a Twenty20 Internationals.