Pakistan v England: seamer James Anderson remaining positive despite prospect of spin-friendly pitches

Pakistan, in particular, have scythed through England's previously world-beating batting order with spin and seam thanks principally to Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman and Umar Gul.

However, Anderson is not about to forget in a hurry the occasions during England's rise to the top of the International Cricket Council Test rankings when it was the batsmen who provided the foundation for the bowlers to attack.

"There will be days when the bowlers won't get the wickets and the opposition get 600 and we're out in the field for two days," Anderson said. "The batsmen won't be happy with us then.

"It's swings and roundabouts and we have every faith in our batsmen that they will come out strong in the next Test."

After his side were bowled out for just 72 to lose inside four days at the Zayed Stadium, England coach Andy Flower stated that he and captain Andrew Strauss will not be afraid to drop a batsman if necessary for the final Test.

A clutch of middle-order mainstays have been ineffective on this tour to date, and have spent much of their time since the last defeat trying to work out among themselves where they have been going wrong.

"That's something that the batsmen have been discussing," Anderson added. "But they have been fantastic for us over the last two years.

"A lot's been made of two bad games. But the whole team has confidence in our batting unit and they've been working really hard to correct things that have gone wrong."

As for his own brief, Anderson has contributed five wickets in four innings, a fair reward for his toil in conditions which have largely favoured spin.

"Our job is to get 20 wickets in any Test match," he added. "We thought it might be a difficult job for us out here, but we've probably exceeded our expectations in that department.

"We're pretty pleased with the way things have gone (as bowlers). But we're not going to take our eye off the ball and will keep trying to improve on Friday."

Before then England must hope Ian Bell recovers from the stomach upset which kept him away from practice today.

It is expected he will do so if his ailment is the same which briefly troubled Jonathan Trott and Ravi Bopara during the second Test.

Anderson, meanwhile, spelled out England's chief objectives this week and beyond.

They urgently need a victory to ensure they retain that number one Test spot when the ICC hand out the prize money at the annual cut-off date on Apr 1.

More importantly still, England must satisfy themselves that they can play to their potential in these conditions, with two more Asian Test tours on the schedule this year.

"There are a few important issues for us that we've got to come across in the next Test," Anderson added.

"The biggest thing for us is that we've got another two tours in the sub-continent. So to perform well out here is a big thing for us.

"We also have a one-day series coming up, so to take a bit of momentum into that would be useful.

"We want to stay number one in the world as well, and losing Test matches isn't going to help us achieve that. We've got to try to win every Test match we possibly can."

Spinners have dominated Pakistan's wins in Dubai in the first Test and in Abu Dhabi in the second with 34 of the 40 wickets going to slow bowlers.

Off those, Saeed Ajmal has taken 17 wickets, Abdul Rehman 12 and Mohammad Hafeez five.

England's left-arm spinner Monty Panesar took seven wickets in the second Test, while his spin partner Graeme Swann has fetched nine.

But despite these statistics, Anderson refused to accept the spin-friendly nature of the pitches was discouraging for fast bowlers.

"I don't think so," Anderson said on Wednesday.

"Seamers have got plenty of wickets. (Stuart) Broad bowled well in the last game and Umar Gul got four wickets in the first, so it is just that the spinners have outshone us in the first two Tests."

Broad, who took 4-47 in the first innings of the second Test, has taken eight wickets in the series, while Anderson's tally stands at five.

Anderson said he was happy with England's bowling performance to date.

"Our job is to get 20 wickets in any Test match and we thought it might be a difficult job here but probably we have exceeded our expectations in that department, so we are pretty pleased," said the 29-year-old.

Anderson said he believed England had some issues to address, the priority being their batting weakness against spin bowlers, before this year's tours to Sri Lanka and India.

"I think there are a few important issues we are trying to come across in the next Test, the biggest thing for us is that we have two other tours in the subcontinent and that's for us a big thing.

"We also have a one-day series coming up so to take a bit of momentum into that will be useful as well," said Anderson of the four one-day matches and three Twenty20 internationals that follow the Tests.

Anderson insisted that the mood in the England camp was good despite the two losses.

"I think the mood is very good considering the position we are in, in this series. We are concentrating on how to go about winning this last game," said Anderson, who has taken 245 wickets in 65 Tests.

"We are open in this group and the guys have been open and honest."

Meanwhile, batsman Ian Bell was forced to miss training on Wednesday after falling victim to a stomach bug but team management said he is likely to resume training to Thursday.

Pakistan v England: England spinners strike early to dismiss Pakistan's openers

But there was turn from the outset this morning once England turned to Monty Panesar, and then Graeme Swann.

Panesar was called into the action first, for the 10th over, in his 40th Test and his first since the start of the 2009 Ashes in Cardiff.

Despite a nervy start as he, like Swann, appeared to drop short too often in his early overs, it was evident almost immediately both would be in the game if they could get it right.

The key was to find a suitable length on a slow surface nonetheless already responsive to their skills.

Ironically, both Swann and Panesar struck with deliveries which did not turn - but batsman error stemmed from doubts sown by spin.

Swann had beaten Taufeeq Umar with turn and bounce past the outside edge on the front-foot defence before the left-hander shouldered arms in the same over and was bowled off-stump.

Panesar dropped Mohammad Hafeez, a sharp return catch low to his left. But that was irrelevant after the very next ball went on with the arm and bowled the same batsman middle-and-leg on the back foot.

England's decision to pick two spinners and just two frontline seamers, as they try to get back in this three-match series following their hammering in Dubai, was therefore already looking sound.

But Broad proved his worth by taking two wickets for two runs, again both bowled, in 13 balls soon after lunch.

They were close to action replays too, the ball snaking back into Younus Khan and then Azhar Ali - bowling the former off his pads as he shaped to drive and the latter through the gate.

The second success came with an especially good delivery which offered to swing away before jagging back just enough.

Two new batsmen therefore joined forces with just one run between them.

Misbah's response was to hit Panesar for successive sixes from the crease, and Shafiq also cleared the ropes when he went up the wicket to the slow left-armer.

There was much earnest defence between the big shots, though, as Pakistan's fifth-wicket pair adopted a necessarily patient approach.

They also had a moment of fortune each.

Shafiq got only a thin inside-edge to save himself when he was up the wicket again and went through with another attempted big hit at Swann.

Then, on 30, Misbah edged Panesar just wide of slip - where James Anderson was unable to react quickly enough.

Pakistan v England: hosts test tourist's spinners in Abu Dhabi

But there was turn from the outset this morning once England turned to Monty Panesar, and then Graeme Swann.

Panesar was called into the action first, for the 10th over, in his 40th Test and his first since the start of the 2009 Ashes in Cardiff.

Despite a nervy start as he, like Swann, appeared to drop short too often in his early overs, it was evident almost immediately both would be in the game if they could get it right.

The key was to find a suitable length on a slow surface nonetheless already responsive to their skills.

Ironically, both Swann and Panesar struck with deliveries which did not turn - but batsman error stemmed from doubts sown by spin.

Swann had beaten Taufeeq Umar with turn and bounce past the outside edge on the front-foot defence before the left-hander shouldered arms in the same over and was bowled off-stump.

Panesar dropped Mohammad Hafeez, a sharp return catch low to his left. But that was irrelevant after the very next ball went on with the arm and bowled the same batsman middle-and-leg on the back foot.

England's decision to pick two spinners and just two frontline seamers, as they try to get back in this three-match series following their hammering in Dubai, was therefore already looking sound.

But Broad proved his worth by taking two wickets for two runs, again both bowled, in 13 balls soon after lunch.

They were close to action replays too, the ball snaking back into Younus Khan and then Azhar Ali - bowling the former off his pads as he shaped to drive and the latter through the gate.

The second success came with an especially good delivery which offered to swing away before jagging back just enough.

Two new batsmen therefore joined forces with just one run between them.

Misbah's response was to hit Panesar for successive sixes from the crease, and Shafiq also cleared the ropes when he went up the wicket to the slow left-armer.

There was much earnest defence between the big shots, though, as Pakistan's fifth-wicket pair adopted a necessarily patient approach.

They also had a moment of fortune each.

Shafiq got only a thin inside-edge to save himself when he was up the wicket again and went through with another attempted big hit at Swann.

Then, on 30, Misbah edged Panesar just wide of slip - where James Anderson was unable to react quickly enough.

Pakistan v England: second Test action, in pictures

Pitch ready: the second Test gets under way with a typical scene of unfinished business in the background

Picture: ACTION IMAGES

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Pakistan v England: Monty Panesar's comeback solid and reassuring but the hosts adapted well to his tactics

So, was Monty Mark II any different? Not significantly. His bowling on Wednesday, introduced as early as the ninth over - ahead of Swann - was still pretty mechanical. After early nerves, he settled into a reasonable rhythm, wheeling away on a persistent line and length, save the odd short ball, and got some response from the pitch. He was accurate.

Immediately after he grassed the caught-and-bowled chance from Mohammed Hafeez, he sent down a similar delivery which slid inside Hafeez’s bat as he played for a bit of non-existent turn. Panesar didn’t possess a reputable arm ball in his first incarnation with England, and, as he confessed on Wednesday night, this success was more by accident than design.

But he did produce one of the deliveries of the day: a beautifully flighted teaser, enticing the obdurate Misbah-ul-Haq into a drive which he edged as the ball spun sharply. Unfortunately the usually alert Jimmy Anderson was slow out of the blocks and didn’t lay a hand on it.

Maybe it was a sign, though. Perhaps it said that Monty Mark II will be more prepared to try something to get a wicket. In time we might see him vary his position on the crease, or scramble the seam in delivery to tempt and confuse.

It is a good time to be a spinner. Hawk-Eye and the Decision Review System have doubled the number of lbw verdicts they win and batsmen cannot just ‘kick’ away straight deliveries with impunity. But the penny is quickly dropping, and they are already evolving the way they play.

It was noticeable on Wednesday that Pakistan played everything with the bat, keeping pads out of the way, and avoiding the sweep. In future spinners will have to be cannier than just to plug away on the stumps and hope the batsman misses one. But as comebacks go, Panesar’s was solid and reassuring and there’s no shame in that.

Pakistan v England: Misbah-ul-Haq on a mission to stabilise hosts with calm, caution and cunning

Misbah is not as good a player as Inzamam-ul-Haq, a consummate hooker who would have dealt with Broad’s bouncers. But Misbah has something of Inzamam’s lordly demeanour, and he is a far more impressive captain.

Out of Pakistan’s spot-fixing scandal, Misbah is the best thing to have come – along with the virtues he has inculcated in his inexperienced team. While Salman Butt is serving a 30-month sentence, Misbah is serving his country.

In the process of winning seven and losing one of his 14 Tests so far, with an equally fine one-day record, he has brought a stability that Pakistan has seldom known, perhaps not since the 1950s. Their team selections and batting orders used to change for a pastime, or perhaps for a reason more sinister, but not under Misbah. Only his fourth bowler differs from one Test to the next.

The fact that he admits his age is 37 suggests, in itself, a basic honesty.

So many Pakistanis have appeared at ‘20’, and retired long before they have reached 35. But not Misbah.

His calmness may well stem from his perspective on life and having an alternative career. Born in Mianwali in Punjab, and from the same Niazi clan as the former captain (and perhaps future president) Imran Khan, he studied at college and got an MBA before he played first-class cricket, starting in 1999.

His combination of calm, caution and cunning must have soon become evident because he has been captaining domestic teams since 2001. He won a few national caps the best part of a decade ago, but did nothing of note, and was not picked for Pakistan between 2003 and 2007.

But his characteristics were just what Pakistan needed after the manic captaincy of Shahid Afridi and the criminal one of Salman Butt. Whereas Afridi bit the ball, Misbah bit the bullet and took Pakistan back to basics.

It would be an exaggeration to say that Pakistan’s cricket could have died of shame after the spot-fixing, but it could have wilted and declined, scandalous and homeless. But Misbah has stopped that happening, by averaging 80 as Test captain, and by his leadership. In his calm, cautious and cunning way, Misbah has been the most important cricketer in the world in the last year.

Pakistan v England: pathetic batting cost Andrew Strauss and his team and makes a mockery of their No 1 ranking

While trying to save the game on Thursday, Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen should not have been attempting the hook shot. Cook, of all people, is capable of batting for long periods. KP, we all know, just doesn’t think. It is all bravado and talent. “I am going to play my way and nobody is going to stop me.”

It was as if their brains went out of the window as they were padding up in the dressing room.

From two innings it is clear Ian Bell couldn’t pick Saeed Ajmal. He has more chance of picking his nose than Ajmal’s doosra. And if you can’t pick a wrist spinner then you are struggling.

Andrew Strauss was unlucky to get a bad decision. I wouldn’t have given him out. Jonathan Trott played a faultless knock, a bit like Matt Prior in the first innings. His performance was about occupation of the crease, being watchful, careful, patient and simply waiting for an easy ball to hit. Then somehow his concentration lapsed and he succumbed to a cross-batted cut without moving his feet.

Eoin Morgan is overrated as a Test match cricketer. I know he is a superb one-day batsman but under pressure in Test matches he doesn’t cut it. In the first innings he attempted a premeditated sweep to a straight half-volley. In the second innings he played back to a half-volley that turned out of the bowlers’ footmarks and all he could do was get a thin edge to the keeper.

Making runs in Test cricket is no big deal. Morgan made a hundred at Edgbaston against India last summer, but everyone was at it then against a poor attack. It is making runs for the team when you are in trouble that is the mark of a quality player.

Strauss was interviewed after winning the toss and said all the right things about how the team had realised in the two weeks since arriving here that they had to occupy the crease, show a great deal of patience and accept that runs arrive at a slower pace than on the bouncy pitches in Australia and South Africa. He was dead right. But only two of his players stayed on message: Prior and Trott.

In the first innings, and at times during the second, England gave the impression that they had decided not to let Ajmal tie them down.

Somehow they felt they had to get on top of him and score runs. In the first innings Cook was out cutting Mohammad Hafeez but picked the wrong length and it was too close to his body to play that shot. Also this was only the sixth over of the match.

Strauss then attempted to pull a good-length ball that was not short enough before Pietersen missed a straight ball, lunging at least two feet in front of his pad.

Ken Barrington knew how to bat in the subcontinent. He used to say you had to book in for bed and breakfast, which means when you get in, stay in and make the opposition bowl you out. The two guys who made runs for Pakistan, Hafeez and Misbah-ul-Haq, did exactly that. It is not rocket science and England should have taken note.