Bangladesh batting coach Mohammad Ashraful believes the national side now ranks among the top two or three Test teams in the world, and says the squad is dreaming of reaching the World Test Championship final despite a difficult road ahead.

Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Ashraful was asked whether Bangladesh could be considered the second best Test side in Asia.

"The performances certainly say so. If you look at us as a team, I think we are one of the top two or three Test teams in the world," he said.

He pointed to the sheer experience within the squad as a key differentiator from rivals such as Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

"You will not find players who have played so many matches in other teams. The 15 players selected for Bangladesh, and the 11 who play, have played around 40, 50, 60 or 80 matches each," he said.

Mushfiqur Rahim leads that experienced core with 105 Test appearances, followed by Mominul Haque on 80, Taijul Islam on 62, Mehidy Hasan Miraz on 60 and Litton Das on 56, while captain Najmul Hossain Shanto has featured in 44 matches so far.

Bangladesh currently sit fourth in the World Test Championship standings, having climbed to their highest ever ranking of sixth overall with 78 rating points following a drawn series in Australia. Ashraful made clear the squad has not lost sight of the format's biggest prize.

"Of course, why shouldn't we dream of the World Test Championship final? We are on the right track. If we perform well match by match, that is certainly our ultimate goal," he said.

The coach also reflected on Bangladesh's recent run of results, which included a nine wicket win over Australia in Darwin, their first Test victory there in 23 years, before a heavy innings defeat in Mackay saw them bowled out for 64 and 91 in the same match.

"If you look at the last 10 months, before the Darwin Test we had won four of our previous five Tests. After winning in Darwin, we have won five of our last six," he said.

Ashraful credited Hasan Mahmud's nine wicket haul, along with half centuries from Shanto and Miraz and a five wicket return from Miraz himself, for the strength of the Darwin performance, and recalled the reaction it drew from some of Australia's own former greats.

"I met everyone during the first Test. Hayden, Gilchrist, Ricky Ponting, I saw them every day. They were very happy with our players' performances, especially with the way we dominated in all three departments," he said.

Turning to individual form, Ashraful singled out Towhid Hridoy for praise following his unbeaten 350 against South Africa 'A', a knock that came shortly after a subdued Test debut in Zimbabwe.

"I am very happy with Hridoy's performance. I have been working with the team for the last 10 months. He works incredibly hard on his batting," he said.

Ashraful said Hridoy had clearly learned from that difficult start in Harare.

"His Test debut in Zimbabwe was not very good. From those two innings, he understood where he had gone wrong. Then, in his very next innings, he scored an unbeaten 350, incredible," he said.

Asked whether Hridoy's presence might have changed the outcome in Mackay, Ashraful was careful to separate the two results.

"That is a different context. We performed exceptionally well in Darwin. Not just exceptionally well, that victory ranks above all our other wins. We dominated for 11 sessions and won. We could not do well in Mackay because the conditions were different. The toss also played a big role".

Looking beyond the Test arena, Ashraful said he was hopeful Bangladesh could add another gold medal in men's cricket at the upcoming Asian Games, recalling his own experience leading the side to the country's first title in the event.

"I won Bangladesh's first gold medal when I was captain. We did not win gold in the next two editions. India and Pakistan are strong this time, but our main team is also going. If we play our best, the dream we are going there with can certainly become a reality," he said.