Misbah-ul-Haq was not able to replicate his success in the Tests in the UAE in the limited-overs games © Getty Images

Sometimes it is hard to make sense of defeat. On the brink of rescuing some dignity from the limited-overs half of England’s tour, Pakistan threw away any hope of redemption. England bowled and fielded with great heart to underline their determination to remain the pre-eminent side in T20 cricket. But that is no solace for Pakistan fans who are understandably convinced that their team had done enough to win in Abu Dhabi.

A perplexing outcome was made more painful by the familiar sight of Misbah-ul-Haq fluffing another run chase. He wasn’t the only culpable player although he was the most visible. Misbah has worked wonders with Pakistan cricket, particularly in the Test arena. He has brought stability to a capsizing vessel. He has been lauded for a whitewash of England in the Test series but he now faces a battle to save his captaincy in one-day cricket.

Misbah has been upset by criticism of his leadership, questioning the media’s agenda against him. Misbah’s cautious methods have certainly polarised opinion, although that legitimate debate has barely hindered the deserved acclaim that he has received for his record in Test cricket. But it is in limited-overs cricket that Misbah often strikes the wrong chord, out of tune with the match situation, a virtuoso playing to the wrong beat.

Some sections of the media might have an agenda against Misbah but that is a captain’s lot. Unfortunately, the evidence of these one-day performances hasn’t left Misbah with much sympathy for his case, especially once he linked his defence with support for Shoaib Malik. Pakistan has a strong tradition in limited-overs cricket; the fans know what to expect and are not easily deceived. Indeed, much of Pakistan’s recovery in one-day cricket, culminating in the World Cup semi-final in Mohali, was during Shahid Afridi’s captaincy.

Leadership is important in cricket, and cricket’s different formats require different leadership styles. As such, the Pakistan Cricket Board does face a genuine dilemma. Misbah is clearly the right captain for Pakistan’s Test team but he doesn’t seem capable of adapting to cricket’s shorter formats. If the PCB is in any doubt about the captain or any of its players it should ask itself what Australia would do? It might be harsh on Misbah, and everything he has achieved, but the long-term development of the team must come first.

Is this the limit of Misbah’s and Pakistan's miracle?

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Misbah ul Haq read correctly that Pakistan were in a selection muddle; Shoaib Malik wasn’t the answer. © Getty Images

Pakistan’s splendid over-achievement in the Test series preceded lifeless surrender in the one-day sequel. In the equation of whitewashes, Tests carry more gloss but Pakistan’s crash back to earth is a reminder that the recent dominance of Misbah-ul-Haq’s team in the UAE will be a mirage unless deep foundations are laid by the Pakistan Cricket Board.

Good teams fail intermittently but Pakistan were consistently woeful in this one-day series, a shockingly poor performance considering form in an environment that suits them. Pakistan failed to muster even one decent effort. The emptiness that England’s supporters experienced only a week or ago was transferred to Pakistan’s.

The most dismal moment was the selection for the final match. Misbah and Mohsin Khan opted for a lone fast bowler, one who had been kicking his heels most of the tour, to go with the potential of five spinners. One among the spin quintet was Shoaib Malik, a shadow of his former self since he was forced to modify his action. The poverty of logic in Pakistan’s camp was confirmed by a decision not to select budding allrounder Hammad Azam or a second fast bowler. Even dropping Imran Farhat, scourge of supporters, offered little solace.

The series started badly and never recovered. The first alarm bell was Misbah’s decision to use his influence over the selection of Malik, a captain’s autocracy that invariably leads to unhappiness except for when it was once exercised by Imran Khan. To his credit, Misbah read correctly that Pakistan were in a selection muddle; the selected squad was inadequate and needed bolstering. Malik wasn’t the answer.

In defeat, the focus inevitably fixes on the captain, and Misbah did little else to help his cause. His voice and body language after losing the toss in the first two matches were of a man defeated by circumstance. Pakistan’s generally inhibited and defensive approach to the series bore his hallmark; a winning strategy for the Test arena isn’t usually appropriate for limited-overs cricket. It was a surprise to see a Pakistan team apply such little pressure on the opposition with bat or ball.

Misbah’s tactics have brought success in this format, although he has been rescued too frequently by the individual performances of Shahid Afridi, Mohammad Hafeez and Saeed Ajmal. Afridi and Hafeez were below par in this series. Their failure exposed Pakistan’s strategy to the extent that there didn’t seem to be much of one. Personnel were shifted with little purpose and the management team were slow to react to events and form.

Pakistan seemed little bothered to perform let alone win, a mindset that can prevail when a one-day series follows Tests. But that is no excuse. A defeat would have been acceptable had it helped the future development of this Pakistan team. That was not the case here. Pakistan need to plan with the 2015 World Cup in mind, decide who of the current group will remain a core player in three years, and nurture younger players to fill the obvious gaps in this team.

That process might lead to thoughts of a different captain, even though Misbah should certainly remain at the helm of the Test team, but it does require urgent attention to other areas. Azhar Ali might be the answer to the one-day opening slot but that leaves holes in the middle order alongside the emerging talent of Asad Shafiq and the frustrating talent of Umar Akmal. Hammad Azam needs to be tested in Abdul Razzaq’s old role of batting allrounder, and the management team must decide who partners Umar Gul with new and old ball out of Junaid Khan and Wahab Riaz. This leaves the wicket-keeping slot where a trilogy of Akmals has failed to convince for differing reasons.

One failure should not overshadow the many unexpected successes of the past 18 months, but it serves an important purpose since the flaws in the current squad and tactics can no longer be ignored. The PCB must take a longer view and build a new team for the 2015 World Cup, and the new regime’s response to this series will help us measure the extent of its capabilities and ambitions.

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Shoaib Malik was drafted into the squad despite not having done anything of note recently © Getty Images

A whitewash means nothing when the next match begins, and Pakistan proved it in the first one-day international of their series against England. From the moment Misbah-ul-Haq lost the toss, and his body language betrayed his disappointment, Pakistan were a beaten team. A successful climb to the summit of international cricket requires all challenges to be treated with equal ambivalence and resolution. Still, one defeat isn’t enough to deflate the feel-good factor surrounding Pakistan’s progress.

England produced some excellent individual performances in Abu Dhabi, their skipper Alastair Cook's century followed by a perfectly timed two-fingered salute to the selection committee from Steven Finn. Pakistan didn’t have the skill to overcome those outstanding efforts and they fared little better against a more comfortable challenge from Samit Patel. When Pakistan suck they do it with insatiable lust.

Despite all the highs of last year, Pakistan’s mixture isn’t quite a heady cocktail. A dearth of quality openers and allrounders poses the most serious question of Pakistan’s talent pool.

Pakistan have persisted with men of considerable experience but unflattering vital statistics.

Imran Farhat and Shoaib Malik are batsmen — and it is hard to consider Malik anything more in these latter days of his career — with averages below 35 in both Test and one-day cricket, the product of more than a decade of endeavour. Such numbers suggest the players are still struggling to properly establish themselves, fine in a fledgling career but an untimely two-fingered salute to selection logic after so many years of opportunities.

By all accounts, Misbah personally made the call for Malik’s inclusion; Farhat’s relative is acting head of the national selection panel. Pakistan cricket has made a noble effort to extricate itself from the clutches of spot-fixing, what it doesn’t need now is to lose its renewed power because of faulty connections. Both Malik and Farhat, at various times in their careers, have carried the hopes of supporters but those days are long gone. All they carry now is the stench of a decrepit system; they have been damned in the court of public opinion.

Farhat only occasionally produces a useful innings, and the last time Malik scored anything of note it was the love of Sania Mirza. Malik and Farhat might do well in the remaining matches of the series but any short-term success only delays the development of this Pakistan cricket team. Their pasts tell us that a correcting failure wouldn’t be too far away, whereas the future belongs to others. From this squad, Azhar Ali would benefit most from the rigours of one-day cricket and Hammad Azam is a better investment than Malik. Abdur Rehman is another tempting option.

Pakistan retain every chance of winning this one-day series against England, whether or not they change the team, but selection has an important role in developing young cricketers, and the presence of Shoaib Malik and Imran Farhat in the starting XI is suffocating that development.

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Younis Khan delivered a lesson in the lost art of playing spin bowling © Associated Press

Pakistan cricket lived a dream beyond its wildest imagination in the stadiums of Arabia. Misbah-ul-Haq’s Pakistan worked a miracle to inflict a whitewash on the world’s top side, only the fifth occasion that a Pakistan team has achieved that landmark. England were expected to be formidable opponents, likely to expose Pakistan’s progress as superficial. England improved with the series but not enough to challenge Pakistan’s dominance. The rapid progress that Pakistan have made in the last 12 months was sealed with an English kiss.

Determination and tenacity are trademarks of this new Pakistan, although there is no shortage of skill in the spin attack, the best in Asia, or the pace of Umar Gul, a threat with new ball and old. In Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq, Pakistan have young batsmen of sound temperament, a trait often lacking in emerging Pakistani talent. At the helm, Misbah, the mild-mannered miser of Mianwali, has galvanised his troops in a fashion unseen since the days of Imran Khan. Mohsin Khan, a flashing blade in Imran’s team, has been just as sharp in his astute handling of Pakistan’s progress.

In a series dominated by Pakistan’s spin bowlers and the DRS, batsmen have been befuddled, embarrassed, even shell shocked. This mysterious art of spin has left some of the world’s best players tortured wrecks; a mental monster devoured confidence and frazzled nerves. Indeed, both sides struggled at the crease; the batsman’s series we expected was a bowler’s paradise. In these unexpected circumstances, Younis Khan’s innings in the final Test might just be the performance of the contest.

Younis is a happy cricketer, a smile super-glued to his Pathan features. He treats success and failure with equal levity, as demonstrated by a jovial acceptance of his status as former captain. Beneath that pleasant exterior is a fearless man of dignity and deep principles. Fate has been unkind to Younis in his personal life; deaths and tribulations have visited regularly, offering perspective to any trifling punishments and banishments meted out by his erratic employer, the Pakistan Cricket Board.

Younis has been an unassuming warrior, overshadowed by Inzamam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Yousuf, a third man in Pakistan’s great middle order of the last decade. Perhaps he struggled to create a career-defining moment despite a mighty record and a Twenty20 World Cup win to his credit? His batting style lacks the stubborn clout of Inzamam or the fluent grace of Yousuf. His love-hate relationship with the Pakistan captaincy alienated supporters, when Bob Woolmer groomed him to lead. But dignified patience is finally earning Younis the rewards his class deserves.

Much of the series was a disappointing one considering Younis’s recent form, although failure would have been lost amid the wasteland of poor batting that both sides inhabited. Younis, however, rose above his peers, delivering a lesson in the lost art of playing spin bowling. His feet hurried like those of a tightrope walker balancing without nerve down every line the England bowlers chose to bowl, bat twirling in front of pad. He read turn from the bowler’s hand and watched it fizz from the pitch. He danced down the wicket, he swept and manoeuvred, but above all else he dominated.

It was the innings of the series and Azhar was swept along beside him, urged to produce a career-defining knock of his own, learning from the master, imitating, supporting, and growing in stature. In a decade’s time, when Azhar reflects on his career, he will remember this partnership with Younis as the moment that an earnest youth won his international spurs. For the genius of Younis's innings wasn’t simply in its brilliant execution, it was also in the way that he inspired a Man-of-the-Match performance from Azhar, demoralised England’s bowlers and reminded their batsmen that mastering high-class spin is an art that is currently beyond them.

A whitewash covers blemishes, and this Pakistan team is a few coats from perfection. Dominating in home conditions is a world away from global success. A vigilant cricket board will have observed that Pakistan didn’t convince at the top of the order and struggled to find a gear change until Younis broke free. The best international teams possess an accomplished wicketkeeper batsman and a bowling allrounder. Adnan Akmal didn’t do enough to win a long-term place and the second fast bowler was a passenger in each Test.

For these reasons, Misbah’s Pakistan team isn’t the strongest the country has produced but it might just be the team that makes the most of its attributes; a whole greater than the sum of its parts, an example of the value of unity when a nation yearns to be one. These are critical days in the history of Pakistan, times of damaging uncertainty and grave insecurity, with politicians, soldiers and lawmen playing with people’s lives, a persecuted population looking for a way out. Out of this storm, Pakistan’s cricketers have done what politicians, soldiers and lawmen have failed to do: they have united a nation and shown that adversity is no barrier to the hopes and dreams of their embattled countrymen.

A whitewash against England is satisfying enough but Pakistan’s success in cricket is a clarion call to a nation, a faithful testament to unity and discipline.

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The series victory against England is a momentous triumph, earned through relentless grind and injected with magical spin bowling © AFP

The Abu Dhabi pitch was easing up, the heavy roller would flatten it further. Team Misbah had batted too Misbah-ly, going at a crawl when a thrash or two would have eased nerves. England bat deep and 145 was a trifling target for the world’s No. 1 Test team, which boasts some of the planet’s leading batsmen. Think again. Misbah-ul-Haq’s Pakistan has a layer of ice smothering the fire in its veins, unlike any Pakistan team that has blown hot and cold before it. Forget rankings, Pakistan cricket and its supporters are feeling on top of the world.

For a cricket nation exiled from its home, a home ravaged by conflict and political instability, a team decimated by controversy and skulduggery, this series victory is a momentous triumph, earned through relentless grind and magical spin bowling. Pakistan’s spinners have been irresistible in this series; running through England’s batting order in three innings out of four is an outstanding achievement, one that not many could have predicted.

Today belonged to Abdur Rehman—he had just reward for many days of unwavering support of his spin partner, the poker-faced wizard Saeed Ajmal. Rehman doesn’t always extract turn, but he did here—at speed. England’s batsmen were trapped on the crease, bamboozled and beaten. Meanwhile Ajmal, almost silently, became the fastest Pakistan bowler to a hundred Test wickets. Hailing from the nation of Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, and Waqar Younis, Ajmal’s record is as stunning as Pakistan’s success.

But Ajmal’s ascent would have been difficult without the stability of Misbah’s captaincy. Misbah has flirted with Pakistani hearts before, only to break them. In Test cricket, as captain of his country, he has discovered a river of love. The only debate about Misbah’s captaincy is the run-rate of his batsmen, such a trifling matter in the grand order of Pakistani controversies that it speaks volumes about the success of his methods.

Misbah has brought tenacity to Pakistan cricket, best exemplified by the fascinating partnership between Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq in Pakistan’s second innings. Previous Pakistan teams would have succumbed to a base instinct to blast their way out of trouble, yet Misbah’s young troopers dug in, deeper and deeper. A partnership alien to the Pakistani spirit, albeit hewn of Misbah’s cool resolve, forged the winning margin.

Pakistan’s rejuvenation, however, isn’t exclusively made in Mianwali, home of Misbah. From his pavilion, Mohsin Khan the Eagle, has been watching keenly, urging, cajoling, hugging, even kissing. An unlikely and unpopular selection as interim coach, Mohsin has won over his critics and left Pakistan’s cricket board with an unexpected dilemma. When captain and coach combine in such spectacular fashion, why change the formula?

World cricket is a more exciting place with Pakistan cricket a powerhouse again. Success has come on pitches reminiscent of home, but the same could be said of all the countries above them in the Test rankings. The first of these countries that begins to dominate abroad will emerge from the pack. It is a pleasant surprise to count Pakistan among them.

England were good in Abu Dhabi but Pakistan were better, ripping an absorbing Test match from the grip of their formidable opponents. A series win in such a thrilling manner has surprised even Pakistan’s careworn supporters. Misbah’s Pakistan, of steel, unity, and joy, has given the whole nation a cause to celebrate.

If anybody was in any doubt, Pakistan cricket zindabad.

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As Saeed Ajmal leapt with joy, so did the rest of Pakistan © AFP

Never in the field of cricket conflict have so many enjoyed a match played before so few. Pakistan's thumping victory in Dubai was accompanied by shrill cries of glory that echoed around a near-empty stadium, but it was also greeted with a torrent of exultant tweets and status updates that rang out around the world.

This was the examination of Pakistan's progress that was anxiously awaited, a bout with the world's No.1 Test team, a tussle that might expose the illusion of Pakistan's cricketing resurrection. Instead, Misbah-ul-Haq's team moved their supporters a few steps closer to heavenly rapture.

England were disappointing, a batting performance unworthy of their status. But Pakistan have also made Sri Lanka look miserable here, and perhaps there is more substance to this revival than could have been hoped for? With Saeed Ajmal in such mesmeric form and Misbah's leadership more impresive by the day, Pakistan are capable of turning their Middle East abode into as much of a fortress as Karachi once was. On this evidence, Pakistan can be a power again in Test cricket and the world game will be better for it.

Ajmal was the master of mind games and ball control, unafraid to toss the ball up, confident in his variations. England played to Misbah's masterplan - he prefers to bowl first in such conditions - and Ajmal's wrists and fingers worked their magic. His elbows, meanwhile, extracted some unfair disgruntlement from an English commentator or two, despite the ICC declaring his doosra a legal delivery. A verdict on the legality of long sleeves is eagerly awaited.

To his credit, Matt Prior made no fuss about Ajmal's bowling action, after hitting England's best score, exposing the miserable effort of his colleagues. England's batsmen were collectively poor, a sharp contrast to Pakistan's excellent team bowling effort, Umar Gul and Abdur Rehman playing crucial supporting roles on the final day.

Where England were unreliable, Pakistan batted with solidity. They lacked a big innings that would have made England's task even tougher but it was a team batting display enriched by Adnan Akmal's pluckiness in the lower order. Pakistan's batsmen have replaced extravagence and brittleness with grit and consistency, and it is a formula that has allowed their match-winning bowlers to attack and Misbah to rule with an effortless and incisive calm.

England are far from done in this series, as their second-day bowling underlined. But the first match after that shameful day at Lord's in 2010 was always going to carry a thrilling significance for players and spectators of both teams, Pakistan's in particular. Team Misbah's stylish victory has restated that precious ability of sport to cleanse sins and lift hearts. For its manner and its poignancy, Pakistan's ten-wicket triumph will rank among the greatest in its gripping cricket history.

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The cricket in this series should be fascinating enough before the inevitable controversies interfere © AFP

When Pakistan play England, to paraphrase Coldplay, every series is a watershed. Confrontations are frequent, disagreements a ritual. Fifty years of competition have brought us a rivalry infused with socio-political significance. When the malodour of colonial rule began to evaporate, radicals nearer to home and neo-conservatives abroad blew another ill wind through the senses of these cricketing combatants. Both parties have periodically made pledges of mutual respect and bonhomie but the heat of battle tends to create heat, not light.

Certain Pakistan cricketers brought disgrace to English shores in 2010, and that memory will be hard to shake as this series unravels. England arrive in the United Arab Emirates, Pakistan’s exile home, with a stain on their domestic game courtesy of the recent spot-fixing verdict against Mervyn Westfield. As unfortunate as the Westfield case is, it serves to remind players and commentators that corruption in cricket is not a uniquely Pakistani problem, ironically helping to tone down the tension of this series.

Indeed, a series that might have been previewed with dread has become a stimulus for enthusiasm. England are undisputed world champions, Pakistan a surprisingly close second in Test success in the last 12 months. In that period, England scored at the fastest run rate of all teams, while Pakistan bettered only Zimbabwe; forget Imran versus Botham and Wasim versus Atherton, welcome tortoise versus hare.

England’s status has yet to be challenged in Asian conditions, and the conditions in UAE approximate closely to those in Lahore and Karachi. Misbah-ul-Haq’s side has been strong in this environment, even without Saeed Ajmal’s teesra. The cricket in this series should be fascinating enough before the inevitable controversies interfere.

Despite a successful year both teams face selection issues. Tim Bresnan’s injury means that England lose a little balance to their team, which makes the inclusion of a second spinner a bigger gamble. Pakistan’s success in UAE has been based on depth in quality spin-bowling, a lesson England would do well to heed.

Pakistan’s current batsmen are generally less adept against spin than other Asian sides, and Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar will generate more panic than James Anderson and his fellow pacemen. England, though, might be reluctant to start the first Test with Anderson and Broad as their only fast bowlers.

Pakistan’s strength remains with their bowlers, where Ajmal will pose the greatest threat to England’s formidable batting line up. With Umar Gul’s ability to reverse swing and Mohammad Hafeez’s back-up offspin, Pakistan’s attack has more depth in these conditions than England’s. Wahab Riaz, a player who adds some extra pace, batting potential, as well as needle to the contest, would be my choice to support Gul. Pakistan retain that precious ability to plunder wickets in sudden bursts, turning a match on its head. England will need to be wary of such moments.

The key to the contest, however, might be scoring rate. Pakistan’s defensive approach has been born of necessity, and plays to the strengths of its batsmen, especially the senior pros Misbah and Younis Khan. The tactic has worked admirably thus far but Pakistan might have to risk a little to challenge England, the best team they have played in this new era. A need for speed argues for a recall for Umar Akmal, an attacking batsman capable of middle-order acceleration, probably in place of Asad Shafiq. If that change is made it will signal a subtle change in mindset in the Pakistan camp.

The next few weeks are important for both countries; England determined to underline their number one status and Pakistan facing a stern examination of their revival. The series seems set to be hard fought, decided by a small margin. The result is a hard one to call, which adds to the anticipation, but ‘home’ advantage will give Pakistan an edge and Misbah’s tuk-tuk merchants have every chance of completing a tortoise-like crawl to victory.

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