DHAKA, July 10, 2023 (BSS)- Bangladesh assistant coach Nick Pothas said that the series defeat at the hands of Afghanistan won't make the Tigers a bad team overnight.

    He reminded that this side had already won a series against the teams like England and India of late and made them invincible at home since 2015.

    According to him, Bangladesh need not any inspiration to get back to winning-spree as they would take on Afghanistan in the third and final ODI tomorrow (Tuesday) in a bid to avoid the series whitewash.

    "We are very quick to forget that we have won a series against England, India and Ireland. We are judging world class cricketers on two games. We should make sure we judge them over a long period of time. Not two games," Pothas said in Chattogram today.

    "We are talking about professional players. These guys are very professional in the way they go about their business. It doesn't take a lot of boosting from us. They are always ready. This is a fantastic group of players."

    Since 2105, Bangladesh lost only three series-two against England in 2016 and this year and one against Afghanistan. But Bangladesh responded a series defeat to England this year with a victory in the last ODI of three-match series and then winning a T20 series for the first time against the Three Lions.

    Pothas praised Afghanistan's three-pronged spin attack, saying that Bangladesh were benefitted hugely by playing such a quality attack ahead of the World Cup.

    "I think if we are honest, they have the best spin attack in the world. That's just a fact. These three guys have played a lot of white-ball cricket around the world. It is a captain's dream where each one does his job whenever given the ball. Technically, the challenge that they have presented, is a huge advantage to us. It will make us better. If you can face this level of spin, you can face anybody," Pothas said.

    "They keep coming at us. No other team in the world has three spinners of this quality that keep coming at you all the time. It is very beneficial for our team. They are ranked below us, but two of those spinners are among the top three spinners in the world. We are looking at it with a very positive outlook."

    Apart from Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim, all of the Bangladeshi batters appeared to be extremely vulnerable against the spin of Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Even Shakib and Mushfiqur sometimes struggled against them but they overcame it with positive approach.

    Pothas still pinned high hopes of young Bangladeshi players, saying that Rashid and Mujeeb are basically a threat for the batters all over the world regardless of the pitch.

     "I think it is not a question of whether we struggled. It is a question of how the world struggles to pick them. Where they are ranked in the world will tell you everybody in the world struggle pick them," Pothas remarked.

    "I had Mujeeb with me at Middlesex. Even after I was talking to him as a wicketkeeper, I struggled to pick him from behind. Could everyone pick Shane Warne, Muralitharan? That's why they are the best in the world. That's why every competition in the world puts up so much money for mystery spin. Question is, what are we going to do about it, and how is it going to make us better?"