India, Jan. 26 -- Sunil Gavaskar may have been watching a series win, but he sounded like a man already reading the next headline. Speaking on the JioHotstar show after India sealed the rubber against New Zealand in Guwahati, the former captain framed the entire assignment as a warm-up with a deadline.

"This series is like an appetizer; the main course begins from the 7th of February," Gavaskar said, underlining that the immediate takeaway wasn't just the scoreline, but the intent behind it. "Having won the series, the focus now is on defending the World Cup title. These players are preparing thoroughly."

For Gavaskar, the strongest signal of that preparation is what India are doing even when the match situation doesn't demand it. He po...