Bangladesh's old batting frailties resurfaced in Sylhet, where they slumped to a three-wicket defeat against Zimbabwe inside four days last week.

Bundled out for 191 and 255 in their two innings, Bangladesh extended their miserable run at home, where improved pitches have done little to mask their lack of application. The hosts have now lost their last six home Tests.

Amid the gloom, wicketkeeper-batter Jaker Ali has been a rare bright spot. Batting lower down the order, the 27-year-old has been Bangladesh's most reliable presence, hitting four fifties in as many Tests.

Despite often running out of partners, Jaker has already played crucial innings, including a fighting 91 against West Indies in St Kitts that helped end Bangladesh's 15-year Test drought in the Caribbean.

Jaker, who scored 28 and 58 in Sylhet, believes the team's struggles stem from a lack of collective effort with the bat.

"The first match didn't go in our favour… After the first match, there was a good discussion. In our maximum matches, we struggle due to our batting. So batting will be our primary focus," Jaker told reporters in Chattogram yesterday as the side began preparing for the second and final Test, starting Monday.

"Whoever we play against, I think we need to maintain our process. Especially about the batting in which we didn't do well. We talked about the shot selection, and how we can improve that. Not every day will bowlers win you matches. We want all batters to showcase their best performance and win the match for the team," he added, stressing the importance of batting smartly with the tail.

"I have to bat according to the situation… I try to score as many runs as I can along with the tail-enders," he said.

However, it is worth noting that in his second innings in Sylhet, Jaker appeared to shirk responsibility while batting with the tail. During his partnership with No.9 batter Hasan Mahmud -- a 35-run stand where Jaker faced only 33 of 91 balls -- premature strike rotation early in overs had exposed Hasan to the bowlers.

Asked why Bangladesh often falter against lower-ranked sides, Jaker did not sugarcoat his response.

"We make mistakes and that's why we lose. It's as simple as that," he said, backing Mushfiqur Rahim to bounce back soon.

Mushfiqur's form remains a worry for Bangladesh. The veteran has failed to score a fifty in his last 13 Test innings and managed just eight runs across both innings in Sylhet, with his dismissals sparking concern.

"Mushfiq bhai always works really hard and he is still doing well. He hasn't stopped trying, looking for ways to score runs. Hopefully, he will get back to form very soon," Jaker said.

Meanwhile, Zimbabwe got down to business under scorching conditions in Chattogram. Opener Ben Curran said they are ready for a backlash.

"We are expecting Bangladesh to come really hard at us. We are not expecting this to be an easy game. We have to work hard for every moment. We can hopefully put in a similar performance to last game," Curran said.