Australia’s star batsman, Marnus Labuschagne, has sparked discussion ahead of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 by stating that the India National Cricket Team may be low on confidence going into the high-stakes series. Labuschagne pointed to India's recent 0-3 Test series defeat at home to New Zealand as a potential factor impacting the team's morale.

Speaking to reporters at Optus Stadium in Perth ahead of the series opener, Labuschagne emphasized the significance of India’s first home Test series loss in 12 years, suggesting that it could have a lasting effect on the team's mindset.

“It’s really hard to judge. They played in completely different conditions — spinning conditions — but having India come here off the back of a loss at home is something that’s never happened before (in my career),” Labuschagne said.

Labuschagne believes the whitewash, which saw India lose all three Tests to New Zealand, may have dealt a blow to the team's confidence. He pointed out that the Men in Blue, led by Rohit Sharma, are entering the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after suffering their first-ever 0-3 sweep in home conditions.

"I think that is a good thing in terms of… they are probably a little bit lower on confidence, not coming off a Test victory, losing to New Zealand 3-0. I think that’s going to do a little bit of damage to their confidence," he added.

The Kiwis dominated the series, starting with a commanding 8-wicket victory at Bengaluru’s Chinnaswamy Stadium. This was followed by a 113-run win in Pune, and finally, a narrow 25-run triumph in the third Test to complete the sweep.

This marked India's first time being swept 0-3 at home in Test cricket history, a shocking outcome for a team that has traditionally been strong in home conditions.

Despite the loss, Labuschagne was quick to acknowledge India’s potential.

“They’re a quality line-up and they’re one of the best teams in the world. So you can never underestimate a team like that,” he said, underlining that Australia isn’t taking India lightly ahead of the series opener.