England assistant coach Jeetan Patel says he “can’t see India not producing bunsens [big turning pitches]” for the Test series between the two sides starting in January and has defended England’s decision to train in Abu Dhabi without any scheduled warm-up games ahead of the series.

Patel’s comments come after England received criticism for their lack of acclimatisation time in India before the series and for not playing any warm-up games before the first match. Instead, they will complete an 11-day training camp in Abu Dhabi in preparation for the series.

In an interview with The Guardian, Patel says that regardless of the different conditions in Abu Dhabi from those on the ground in India, the players value volume of practice and greater control over their preparation than facing sub-standard warm-up opposition in India.

“Guys want volume, be it batting or bowling; time to work and explore their options,” said Patel. “But it’s going to be a fine line in terms of training for this one. I can’t see India not producing bunsens [spinning pitches], especially after the recent comments from Rohit [Sharma]. And rightly so, that’s the whole point of home advantage. So we have requested a blend of pitches in Abu Dhabi.”

Following India’s loss to South Africa in the Cape Town Test which lasted less than two days, Rohit criticised the ICC for “double-standards” when rating pitches in India compared to the rest of the world. The Cape Town pitch was given an ‘Unsatisfactory’ rating following the Test match.

Despite the expectation of turning pitches, Patel also stated that given the tour in India won’t conclude until March, mental freshness was also behind England’s decision to prepare outside of India.

“We want to challenge the guys but also ensure they arrive in India with enough confidence to be free enough to play how they want to play; to take the game on like they have over the last two years,” said Patel. “It’s also a long tour. We want energy and excitement levels to be high when they hit that first Test, rather than being a fortnight into their time in the country and not as mentally fresh as they could be.”

However, former England players Steve Harmison and Mark Butcher have warned that England’s preparation could lead to defeat in India. “Everybody believes going to India that you’re unlikely to win a five-Test match series in India right? But what people will be less likely to be gentle about is if you go there without having done the requisite getting ready for it and then get battered. That’s kind of inexcusable,” said Butcher on the Wisden Cricket Weekly podcast.

Speaking on TalkSport, Harmison said: “You can not go into India underprepared. [In fact], you can not go into India overprepared. You could be in India six weeks before and still not be prepared for that first Test and the emotion of that.”

England’s first Test match in India will start on January 25 in Hyderabad.

Subscribe to the Wisden Cricket YouTube channel for post-match analysis, player interviews, and much more.