Daijiworld Media Network
Dubai, Jan 19: Spirited Pakistan team beat No. test playing nation England by 10 wickets in the first of three match test series in Dubai on Thursday, Jan 18.
Saeed Ajmal is the Man of the Match for his 10 wicket haul.
This is the 2nd victory for Pakistan in Dubai. This is also the 3rd time that they have inflicted a 10-wicket win over England. Not a nice way to begin the defence of the No. 1 ranking for Strauss. England have plenty to ponder about. They had no answers to the spin twins of Ajmal and Rehman and they will face more of them as the series progresses. Pakistan are building along nicely under Misbah and this win confirms that. The batting has done the job despite looking boring at times, they have got an opening partnership that is clicking at the moment and they have one of the best all-round bowling attack in recent times.
If there is one bowling attack that has the balance and the variety to win a game within 3 days in the flat tracks of UAE, it has to be Pakistan. They have absolutely decimated the number 1 Test side in the world, who looked pretty clueless to be frank.
England will have to re-think about their bowling options. This was the first time that Tremlett has gone wicketless in an innings and they need to somehow bring Panesar into the picture. Ian Bell looked very shaky facing upto Ajmal and Bopara looks like a certainty for the 2nd Test.
Post-match statements:
Misbah: Very proud of my team. We didn't expect it to be so easy for us, it was a wonderful performance. Ajmal's performance in the 1st innings put us on the way to victory. Gul has been a match winner for us for a long period of time and today he proved it. Even Abdur Rehman and Hafeez have contributed with the ball. The batsmen are getting good scores as well, which is crucial for us. After the 2010 incidents, we gathered ourselves mentally and we just wanted to prove to the world that we are a good side, which is wonderful. We know that England are the number 1 side in the world. They were bowling tight lines even under pressure situations. We expect a fightback but we will try to remain disciplined. Thanks to the crowd and the curator.
Strauss: We are obviously disappointed. Losing 5 wickets in the 1st session of day 1 cost us the game. Plenty of things to ponder but we are not going to push the panic button. We are going to come back and show some resistance in the next games. We were caught off guard on day 1, our batsmen should have done better. Our preparations have been pretty good. The track was not turning much, it was the pressure that got the wickets. Our bowlers did exceptionally well to bowl out Pakistan for 350, the most important thing is for us to put big runs on the board. Pakistan were extremely solid. They have a very good balance in the bowling attack, we always knew that.
Ajmal: Very very happy day for me. It was not turning much on day 1 but there was turn on day 3. Looking forward to the next two games.