A new way of thinking and playing cricket were talked about a lot before the Sylhet Test.  Fans were even told by Bangladesh's captain, Najmul Hossain Shanto, that this Test against Zimbabwe would have "something new" to offer.  But once things got going, it was the same old story.  The letdown was the only "newness" that could be seen; it came in the same old package.

Bangladesh folded for 191 runs on a rain-affected Day 1, before Zimbabwe cruised to 67 without loss, clearly showing which team had control.

Fans are still looking very closely to see if this is the "new era" Shanto hinted at.  There were no new ideas in either the plan or the way it was carried out; only memories of failed attempts in the past.

When asked about the performance after Day 1, senior assistant coach Mohammad Salahuddin admitted that things had gotten off to a bad start but claimed that things are changing, at least in the thoughts of the players.

"I’m not sure what the captain said exactly. But if you’re talking about something new, I believe the players are mentally approaching the game differently. They’re becoming more aware of their areas of improvement," said Salahuddin.

"Sure, today we played poorly — both in batting and bowling. But that doesn’t mean the players aren’t trying or lack the ambition to improve. It’s too early to judge."

Salahuddin emphasized that while results haven’t reflected progress yet, there’s ongoing effort behind the scenes to address the issues. "We’re trying new things. We’re working to improve in the areas where we’ve fallen short. Today’s performance was disappointing, but we’ll aim to bounce back quickly," he added.