After Bangladesh suffered another innings defeat in the first Test against India last week, coach Dav Whatmore begged fans to be more patient.
"I can feel your frustration," he said. "But I plead with everyone to please have some more patience. The boys aren't doing this intentionally."
As Bangladesh face India in the second and final Test starting in Chittagong on Friday, the scent of another drubbing is as strong as the breeze in the port city.
The Dhaka defeat was the 30th in 33 Tests for the newest entrants to Test cricket, renewing calls for Bangladesh to be stripped of their Test status.
"That is a very shallow view," said Whatmore, responding to the feeling that Bangladesh were unfit for Test cricket.
"That is one that comes from looking at the scoreboard."
| |||||||||||
The hosts added to their own misery in the innings and 140-run loss in Dhaka with poor fielding, dropping Sachin Tendulkar twice as he hammered a personal best of 248 not out, equalling compatriot Sunil Gavaskar's record of 34 Test hundreds.
India captain Sourav Ganguly insisted before the series that the focus was on results, not records, and none has delivered that better than young pace bowler Irfan Pathan.
The 20-year-old left-armer has rapidly grown in stature to be rated India's leading new ball bowler, hardly a year after making his Test debut in Australia.
Pathan grabbed his maiden 10-wicket Test haul in Dhaka by claiming 11 for 96, winning rich praise for his control and ability to bring the ball back into the right hander.
But cricket-crazy India, which gave a lukewarm response to the Dhaka Test, may have lost even more interest in the series after leg spinner Anil Kumble eclipsed Kapil Dev's Indian record for Test wickets in Dhaka.
Tendulkar may provide some interest -- if he scores another hundred he will break Gavaskar's mark and if he surpasses 157 runs he will become the fifth batsman to score 10,000 Test runs.
More from rediff