Congratulations, Pakistan! While I expected a decent contest, the manner in which they completely destroyed the world number one Test nation took me completely by surprise, just as England's annihilation of India had done last summer.
Neither team produced a feast of runs, and indeed Monty Panesar, Graeme Swann and Stuart Broad each enjoyed a reasonable series. It's just that, in Abdur Rehman and Saeed Ajmal, Pakistan had two spin bowlers who were almost unplayable on the UAE pitches, and the England batsmen simply had no answer. Andy Flower's men cling on to their Test table leadership by a single point while Pakistan remain fifth, but closing the gap on Australia to just one rating point. They are on a roll and, while they have a long wait for another Test series, they may be able to take that confidence into the forthcoming ODI series against England, then the Asia Cup.
Misbah ul-Haq has turned into a world-class captain and his average has crept above 45. It's a shame that he is approaching the age of 38, normally the time when people are clamouring for your retirement! Mohammad Hafeez is less prolific as an opening batsman but gives his captain all-round options, especially in one-dayers. We waited a long time for the first century in the series, then two came at once. Azhar Ali's solid 157 and Younis Khan's more classy 127 gave their side a match-winning second innings total of 365 in he Third Test. Amazingly, it's the first time in over 100 years since a side has triumphed after being dismissed in the first innings for under 100! Younis still boasts a world-class career average above 50 and Pakistan need to keep hold of him if hey are to compete at the highest level. Umar Gul demonstrated his value as a whole-hearted fast bowler, not merely a run-saver in ODIs, while Ajmal and Rehman were sensational. In just three games they claimed 43 wickets between them, at under 15 and 17 apiece, respectively.
So where does this whitewash leave England? As I wrote earlier, it wasn't a humiliation for the bowlers. But for the batsmen....? Oh, dear! Cook's 2nd Test 94 was the closest anyone got to three figures but on four out of six occasions he failed to register even double figures. Strauss knuckled down for a gritty 56 first time out in the final match, and Trott had the highest series aggregate, albeit with a mere 161 runs. For Pietersen, Bell and Morgan the trip to the Middle East was nothing sort of disastrous. I'm a fan of the Warwickshire man, and it was wonderful to see him rising to the top last year. However, Ajmal's doosra was his undoing in recent weeks and scored only 51 runs in his six innings. The other two middle-order men fared little better and this leaves a stain on their records. However, I'm sure they will all have more chances, and Bell could be back in the side on home soil, even if not in the one-day fixtures against Pakistan.
All in all, a wake-up call for England and their fans. Nobody likes to be whitewashed, especially in under four days on each occasion! Their Ashes triumph and the home victories have now been put into perspective, but the Aussies and South Africa don't have the spin bowlers who put Cook, Bell, KP et al to the sword. It will be interesting to see how Pakistan do on less spin-friendly pitches but their recovery from the depths of despair in 2010 should be cheered by all in the sport. Test cricket is becoming really interesting again.
