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27-May-2010 02:18:00 GMT
England v Bangladesh 1st Test, Lord's

Strauss Warns England to Beware of Bangladesh

London: Returning England captain Andrew Strauss has warned his side against taking Bangladesh lightly ahead of their series opener at the Middlesex batsman's Lord's home ground.

Bangladesh have won just three of their 66 Tests one against fellow strugglers Zimbabwe and two against a West Indies side weakened by player disputes and have never even drawn with England.

Strauss, rested from England's 2-0 series win in Bangladesh earlier this year and absent from the side that won the World Twenty20 in the Caribbean this month as he no longer plays in the shortest form of the game - knows his side are expected to win well against the Asian minnows.

However, the left-handed opener told reporters at Lord's here on Wednesday, a day before the first of a two-Test series gets underway: "You can't underestimate them.

They (Bangladesh) have got some very dangerous players. This series, it's important we concentrate on our own game and set our standards very high.

Former captain Michael Vaughan said this week that all England can do against Bangladesh is "fail" if they don't win by an innings at both Lord's and Old Trafford, where the second and final Test starts a week on Friday.

But Strauss said: "We'll be marking ourselves not on win/lose, but how close we get to playing the type of cricket we want to play.

Strauss, who has been playing county cricket for Middlesex, said he was eager to return to international cricket. "I'm incredibly excited to be among the group again, especially after what they achieved in the West Indies."

And he insisted he had no regrets about having to watch England win their first major one-day title without him.

Looking at the current squad -- which contains four Twenty20 'survivors' in Kevin Pietersen, Eoin Morgan, Graeme Swann and Tim Bresnan -- Strauss added: "It's great to be part of it again and start putting in place some of the things I've been thinking about while I've been away."


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