India are heading into the upcoming BGT on the back of a 0-3 whitewash at the hands of New Zealand at home. It became the first instance of a team whitewashing India in a three-match series in their backyard. Thus, the Rohit Sharma-less Indian team would be low on confidence ahead of the Perth Test, however, Labuschagne stated that the hosts will not write India off. Talking to reporters ahead of the series opener, Labuschagne said, "It's really hard to judge; they played on completely different conditions, spinning conditions. But, I mean, having India come here on the back of a loss at home, that's something that has never happened before. So, I think that's a good thing because they are probably a little bit lower on confidence, not coming off a Test victory, losing to New Zealand 0-3. That's going to do a little bit of damage to their confidence." "But, at the end of the day, they are a quality line-up, they are one of the best teams in the world. You can never underestimate a team like that," he further opined.  Labuschagne lauded India for standing tall to win the previous BGT Down Under, in 2020/21, despite battling various injury concerns. In addition, India's then captain Virat Kohli returned home (due to paternity leave) and the side was also 0-1 down after losing the first Test in Adelaide (where they were bundled out for 36 in their second essay). Yet, a second-stringed Ajinkya Rahane-led side rose to the occasion, with many youngsters performing on all cylinders, to stun Australia on their home soil. In this regard, the 30-year-old Labuschagne added, "That's what happened in 2021. The likes of Natarajan played. Siraj got his first crack in Australia. Washington Sundar played. Shubman Gill played those last couple of games. But, they were a quality line-up. They have shown that over a period of time you can't ever underestimate the depth of Indian cricket. Anyone who gets the opportunity to play for India has done a lot of hard work to get into the side. To get into the team, you have to play a good player." Labuschagne ended as the highest run-getter when the last BGT was held in Australia. The right-hander returned with 426 runs, with one hundred and two fifties. India, on the other hand, will be without regular captain Rohit Sharma (due to paternity leave) whereas No. 3 batter Shubman Gill is also expected to miss out due to a thumb injury for the Perth Test. In Rohit's absence, Jasprit Bumrah will lead the side. India will be desperate to win three back-to-back Test series in Australia, however, they would know that Pat Cummins-led Australia would come hard at them.