Bangladesh are training as hard as they did before their Test win in Darwin against Australia but have not been able to carry that work into matches, head coach Phil Simmons said on Wednesday on the eve of the second Test against West Indies in Sylhet.

"One thing I can say is that the boys are working hard. They are still practising the way we did before Darwin or before the Pakistan series," Simmons told a press conference. "But we are not able to reflect that practice in matches."

"We have to make sure we get back to the level where we can use the work we do in practice in matches as well. Working hard off the field alone is not enough," he said.

Bangladesh have not won since beating Australia in Darwin. They lost the second Test in Mackay by an innings, drew with Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi, lost both their ODIs in the tri-nation series in the United Arab Emirates and lost the first Test against West Indies in Mirpur by eight wickets.

"Since Darwin, we have not won. Especially, we have not batted well," Simmons said. "In Darwin, we showed what we are capable of. Our resilience and positive mindset were reflected there. But in the formats, we have played since, we have not batted well."

The head coach said the Sylhet pitch looked similar to the one on which Bangladesh beat Pakistan at home.

"It is quite similar to the wicket when we played against Pakistan. The square looks good and the pitch looks good. Overall, it looks like it did then. But we will know its final condition when we come tomorrow morning," he said.

Bangladesh were without Mushfiqur Rahim in Mirpur after he injured his finger at practice the day before the match. Mominul Haque, who suffered a concussion during the Test, is out of the squad, and captain Najmul Hossain Shanto was hurt on the final day.

Simmons said he had no injury concerns over the players currently in the squad. The second Test starts on Thursday.