Vaughan sets off for tour with high hopes as Fletcher gets vote of confidence

Every new tour is a new beginning for the England cricket team, but there really is a sense of adventure about the party leaving for Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. This is Michael Vaughan's first tour as Test captain and he has under his command several young players with everything to gain from the trip. With Duncan Fletcher, the coach, also signing a staff contract with the ECB, the future of English cricket really does begin when the squad takes off from Heathrow bound for Dhaka.

For Vaughan, it is a chance to impress himself as the captain as of right, after taking over from Nasser Hussain during the campaign against South Africa during the summer. Then he had just a few hour's notice whereas now he has had time to plan and prepare for what he regards as a big opportunity.

"It's a great opportunity for me, especially as we're going to a place where England have not been to before for Test cricket. It an exciting time with a good squad mixing experience and youth. We'll prepare hard and make sure that we go into that first Test match fully focused. We expect to win, but you don't win Test matches against anyone without hard work."

He refutes the idea that last summer he took over someone else's side, whereas now it is his team. "When people say it's your side, it's not. It's the England team and I happen to be the captain of it. I had four Test matches in charge in the summer and it was pretty difficult at first but I felt I grew in confidence as the summer went on."

Confidence is as important when it comes to captaincy as it is in batting. "If you keep losing games you're obviously going to get a dip in the confidence level. Winning at Trent Bridge (against South Africa) was a huge boost, but then we went to Headingley and lost but won at the Oval, so it was very much a roller-coaster of a summer."

It could be that confidence gained from successful captaincy will allow Vaughan to get back to his fantastic form with the bat that propelled him to the number one spot in the world rankings by the end of the Ashes tour. "I'm the first to admit that I have to score some runs and I fully expect to do that in Bangladesh. I'm going to work very, very hard over the next two weeks to ensure that I get my form back ready to go into that first Test match."

That comment in no way reflects a complacency about the series against Bangladesh. Contrary to what some people seem to think, it is not regarded as simply a warm-up for the more serious challenges that follow in Sri Lanka. Vaughan is quick to dispel any such thoughts. "The way that Bangladesh have performed in their last few Tests has shown that they're a side on an upward curve. They went to Australia and got 300, and they played well in Pakistan.

"They might not have won a game yet and we fully expect to beat them but, as I've said, you never win any game of cricket without hard work, preparation and making sure you're fully focused."

There is no danger that the coach will allow them to be anything but focused. Fletcher is not one to bring anything other than full commitment to an England tour, whether it is to Bangladesh or Australia. The man who was appointed in 1999 on a contract has been rewarded for his considerable efforts by being put on the permanent staff of the ECB.

Director of cricket operations at Lord's, John Carr, said: "The decision to move Duncan from a fixed term contract to a staff contract demonstrates the Board's own commitment to him and his commitment to the England cause.

"We believe the new arrangement removes the scope for distracting annual speculation regarding the renewal of his contract and is a solution that works well for both Duncan and the Board."

Fletcher himself commented: "This arrangement will assist me in developing a long-term plan for the England team and I am pleased that I can now focus fully on the challenges that lie ahead in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the West Indies this winter."

Starting with the immediate task in hand, Fletcher echoed his captain's view that a series win against Bangladesh could not be taken for granted, even though he expected to be successful. He is treating the first opposition to be encountered on tour with full respect. "

"Bangladesh's performance against Pakistan shows that Dav Whatmore has done a good job with the national side," he said. "They will be no pushover. But this is an England tour, and we want to make sure we win the series."