NEVER one to take a backward step with bat or ball in hand, Paul Collingwood is equally combative off the field as he relishes his imminent Test debut.

"I'm looking forward to Bangladesh - but I'd prefer to be facing a more established side. I'd love a baptism of fire," a typically forthright Collingwood told Northern Echo SPORT this week.

"I'm a pretty confident lad and I always reckon I can do well against anyone. I don't flinch at any time, and I reckon that's why I did so well in Australia.

"I'm sure Bangladesh will be a tough test, and because I haven't experienced Test cricket before that might be a big statement to make.

"I might end up saying, 'Thank God I came up against Bangladesh,' but having played in 38 one-dayers for England I'm accustomed to the international atmosphere."

Maybe Collingwood added the cautious caveat as an after-thought, but don't brand the Durham batsman arrogant.

Confident, yes, but cocky? Never - the supreme faith Collingwood has in his ability is well-founded.

He may be a Test rookie, but the 27-year-old from Shotley Bridge flies to Bangladesh on Tuesday as one of English cricket's eight most precious players.

Even Collingwood, who should make his Test debut against Bangladesh on October 21, was stunned to receive a central contract last month.

Only seven other players - Michael Vaughan, Nasser Hussain, Andrew Flintoff, James Anderson, Marcus Trescothick, Mark Butcher and Ashley Giles - were similarly honoured.

For Collingwood, life is beautiful again after a shoulder injury robbed him of the chance to play in Riverside's debut Test, when England beat Zimbabwe in June.

He said: "Getting a central contract was superb news; I wasn't expecting that. To get in the Test squad, and to get a contract as well, was a great end to the summer. Having been given a contract, I now know I'll be there or thereabouts all year. Obviously, you still have to succeed, but they must be confident in me succeeding because they've given me that contract.

"I've shown in the one-dayers that I can do it and perform as a batsman. I'm confident I can perform at Test level as well.

"Obviously, I'll have to adapt to the game. There are new mental sides to the game that I haven't experienced before and I'll have to learn very quickly.

"Hopefully, I won't have a bad start, but the selectors have proved recently that they're showing more patience than in the past.

"Five or ten years ago, players weren't given much of an opportunity to succeed - they were given one or two Tests and that was it - but I think I'm a prime example of how things have changed.

"I struggled big-time against Pakistan and Australia when I made my England one-day debut in 2001. That was more a mental thing than anything else.

"It was such a big step and I wasn't ready for it, to be honest. But they stuck with me, and I had a different mental attitude when I went to Zimbabwe; I was a lot more positive.

"I know my own game better now than when I started in international cricket, and I can go straight in there and be positive that I'll do well.

"I'll give it my best shot, and all I can do is make sure I prepare in the best way."

Collingwood has become a mainstay of the England one-day line-up since those dark days of 2001, when he flopped in the triangular NatWest Series.

England coach Duncan Fletcher is a long-standing admirer of the hard-hitting all-rounder, who is likely to bat above Flintoff at No 6 in the Tests in Bangladesh.

Indeed, Collingwood is so highly thought of by the England hierarchy that he was heavily involved in this summer's victorious one-day tournament - despite his injury.

He said: "I was invited down by England to be with the squad all the time, which was great. I was a spectator, but I was with my teammates.

"They also rang me every couple of weeks to see how I was progressing and I really appreciated that.

"Once I got back from the World Cup, my goal was to be in the Test squad, and although it wasn't set in stone the feeling was I was very close to being called up.

"I then got the injury, but I got some good form under my belt at the end of the season and now I can't wait to play again.

"I did a lot of fitness work as soon as I got the sling off and got a lot stronger in my legs.

"The month of cricket I had was quite tough because of the injury I'd had. It took a lot out of me, but it would have been more tiring for the lads that played for six months.

"I'm not training at 100 per cent at the moment - I've been able to relax for a couple of weeks - but I'll step it up again when I get to Bangladesh."

Arguably the high point of Hussain's reign as England captain came in the winter of 2000-01, when they won series in Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

With England facing the Sri Lankans before Christmas, and immediately after their stay in Bangladesh, Collingwood reckons Michael Vaughan's men are well equipped to pull off another glorious Asian double. He said: "To beat Pakistan and Sri Lanka away from home was a superb achievement, and as a nation I think we're better at playing spin now.

"Duncan Fletcher has helped us massively with that with the techniques he's brought in. Michael Vaughan, Marcus Trescothick and others are now some of the best players of spin in the world.

"It's very hard to play against Muttiah Muralitharan in his own backyard and get a result, but there are high expectations for us to win. To get a draw out of the series with South Africa by winning the final Test on the last day was a major achievement by the boys."