Mohali, Oct. 6: "We have always taken Bangladesh seriously," Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene said at the PCA Stadium here ahead of Saturday’s ICC Champions Trophy qualifying round match against the Tigers.

The stylish right-hander, who led his side to a clean sweep over hosts England earlier this year, said that while his side had not played much cricket of late, he was comfortable with the way they were building up for the tournament, but was still wary of Saturday’s opposition.

"They are a good outfit, and because they have been playing international cricket consistently for some time now, they are bound to pull off upsets from time to time. We played a young side against them in February when we lost to them, but we learnt a lesson when we lost," he said

On Thursday’s warm-up game against a local side that the Sri Lankans won with a measure of comfort, Jayawardene said: "It was a very good match overall. We chose to bat in conditions where the ball was moving around on a track with grass. We wanted to challenge ourselves, and after a bit of a struggle, we fought back very well.

"As far as I am concerned, the game served its purpose. Our batting order has a lot of experience and plenty of youth too, and therefore we can afford to be flexible. I don’t think the top-order is a cause for concern, we have had ten hundreds in our last eight matches!"

Coach Tom Moody was philosophical at having to qualify for the main tournament even though his side on merit is playing better cricket that some of the "higher ranked" teams.

"We are very excited, we are looking at it positively. We will have some games under our belt before the main competition.

"It gives us a chance to get adjusted to the conditions here in India and familiar with day-nighters. But, we must also control the way we play. I expect us to have a successful qualifying period.

"This is a terrific opportunity for all the teams to play all the opponents in world cricket. It is a test and a challenge for every team. Tomorrow’s match is the most important one for us at this moment. As a team, we don’t look too far ahead. We have prepared very well, and will go in with a lot of confidence."

On how he expected to see his side fare in India after their 1-6 hammering last year, Moody added: "A lot of the young players on that tour were very inexperienced. We hadn’t worked as a group for a long period at that point.

"Now I have been around for a year and a half, and we have worked very hard during that period.

"It takes time for improvement, for young players to feel comfortable and find their feet in international cricket."