Before yesterday, the Test series against Zimbabwe was seen as a chance for Bangladesh to bounce back from the five consecutive home Test defeats and also as an opportunity for some Bangladeshi batters to get back into runs.

But after the abysmal batting display on the opening day of the first Test in Sylhet yesterday, those thoughts have been replaced by fears of a sixth straight home Test defeat and concerns about the team's batting ability in red-ball cricket.

After opting to bat first in a decent surface at the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium, Bangladesh's batting crumbled against an average Zimbabwe attack as the hosts were dismissed for just 191 runs in their first innings.

The extent of the batting failure became even more apparent after Zimbabwe reached 67-0 at stumps, reducing the deficit to 124.

"The wicket was fantastic. Zimbabwe batters also batted really well. We lacked in execution and made tactical mistakes. When the boys were batting, they didn't look uncomfortable or lacked confidence. We made poor shot selections," Bangladesh team's senior assistant coach Mohammad Salahuddin told the media in Sylhet yesterday.

A day before the opening Test, Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto had spoken about how he has been guilty of throwing away his wicket after getting set and how the batters in the team are working hard to do better.

However, there was no reflection of his words on the field.

After openers Shadman Islam (12) and Mahmudul Hasan Joy (14) departed in space of two overs, leaving Bangladesh at 32-2 in 11 overs, Mominul Haque and Shanto repaired the early damage by putting up a 66-run stand.

But just when it looked like Bangladesh could post an imposing first innings total, Shanto, on 40, slashed an ordinary ball of Blessing Muzarabani to a man at point.

Mushfiqur Rahim, Bangladesh's most experienced batter, tried to pull left-arm spinner Wellington Masakadza only to be caught at mid-wicket after making only four runs.

Bangladesh's top scorer Mominul Haque (56) never looked at ease and ended his innings trying sweep the ball against the turn only to top-edge it and get caught at mid-wicket.

Unlike in many recent Tests, lower-order batters Mehedi Hasan Miraz and Jaker Ali could not perform a rescue act and Bangladesh got dismissed for a below par total.

Batters making the same mistakes repeatedly naturally draws questions over their commitment to improvement.

However, Salahuddin claimed that the players are trying to get better, even if the fruits of their efforts are still not visible.

"The boys are trying to change a lot of things mentally and they are very conscious about self-improvement. We have played very poorly today [yesterday]. But we can't say that they aren't trying and they don't have the urge to become great players. "You can make mistakes. But if you repeat the same mistakes, it is a big problem. We need to be careful about repeating the same mistakes."