England’s ‘mind-blowing’ strength in depth the envy of all – Chandika

Bangladesh head coach Chandika Hathurusingha believes the talent pool England have built in recent years makes them the “envy of every Test-playing nation”.

Just 24 hours after their Test side’s agonising defeat against New Zealand in Wellington, England’s white-ball outfit will begin a low-key three-match one-day international series against Bangladesh in Dhaka today.

While Joe Root and Harry Brook are absent in the sub continent because of their Test commitments and a number of others have chosen to prioritise the ongoing Pakistan Super League, the tourists, led by Jos Buttler, have still brought a strong squad .11 members have featured in at least one World Cup-winning campaign so Ha th ur using ha, just a week into his second stint overseeing the Tigers, is well aware of the threat they pose.

“They are the world champions,” he said .“They have one team playing somewhere else, they have another team here. They have a mind-blowing depth of talent.

“They have incredible strength in the last 10 years or so. They are the envy of every Test-playing nation and I am hoping that by the end of my tenure, we can leave something (like that) behind.”

The build-up to this series for Bangladesh has been dominated by speculation of a fall out between OD I captain Tamim Iqbaland Test skipper and star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan. Tamim has previously attempted to downplay the alleged rift with Shakib, who has only recently arrived to play in the series after ten ding to a family emergency in the United States.

“I have been in dressing rooms and I have been in teams where everyone doesn’t get along,” Hathurusingha said. “Still, when they step out, they play as a team.

“When you play for your national team that’s what you expect. You don’t need to be best of friends to go out and have dinner. As long as it is not affecting( the team ), I don’ t see it as a problem.”

Bangladesh defeated Indiain December for their 12 th win in 13 ODI series on home soil, a record that dates back to the 2015 World Cup with their only setback coming against England in 2016.

“We are playing full strength,” Hathurusingha added. “I back our skills and strength. We want to see where we are at, and find out the gap that we have to bridge.”