'I ask for patience from the Bangladesh people' – Phil Simmons after defeat against Zimbabwe

Bangladesh head coach Phil Simmons urged the fans to have 'patience' after losing the first Test match against Zimbabwe at Sylhet International Cricket Stadium, Sylhet, last week. It was Craig Ervine's first Test victory as a skipper and the visitors' first in four years.

Simmons was appointed as Bangladesh's head coach back in October 2024. However, the team has lost one out of five Tests and one out of eight ODIs since his appointment. Moreover, this was their sixth defeat at home, which is also quite disappointing.

Ahead of the second Test match in Chattogram, the head coach clarified to the fans that the team is transitioning and will soon get back on track.

"I ask for patience from the Bangladesh people. I know how passionate they are about the team doing better. I request patience. We are trying to put the right things in place to get us to play better. We pick players. They play at their tempo. The aggressive part comes into [things like] running between the wickets, attitude when you get to the wicket, and attitude on the field," said Simmons, as quoted by ESPN Cricinfo.

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Batting collapse costs Bangladesh as Simmons urges patience

The head coach accepted the faults in the team and that the batters failed to perform in both innings, which led to the defeat. The match was in Bangladesh's hands in the second innings as they batted on 138-2 at one stage with two set batters at the crease. However, after the dismissal of captain Shanto, the middle order collapsed like a pack of cards.

"I think we know that as a unit we didn't bat properly in the first innings [against Zimbabwe when they were bowled out for 191]. We put ourselves in problems. We want to play a brand of positive Test cricket, not just going for 200 runs in a day. The word 'transition' is mentioned in the press. It will take a bit of time to reach where we want to be," Simmons concluded.