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With the conclusion of 2012, it’s time to look back and review Pakistan’s progress over the last 12 months, a year in which they produced some excellent performances in all three formats of the game, but still displayed some of that trademark Pakistani inconsistency along the way.

By Shayan Siddiqui (1st January 2013)

 

With the conclusion of 2012, it’s time to look back and review Pakistan’s progress over the last 12 months, a year in which they produced some excellent performances in all three formats of the game, but still displayed some of that trademark Pakistani inconsistency along the way.

When it comes to the highlight of the year, there’s no need to look much further than the month of January, when Pakistan whitewashed England, the then world’s number one side, in a truly historic performance in the United Arab Emirates. Saeed Ajmal’s seven wickets in the first innings of the first test in Dubai were a sign of things to come, but surely no-one could have predicted the magic we were all to witness in the next test at Abu Dhabi. 

After England grabbed a 70 run first innings lead, Pakistan looked down and out at 54-4, till 16 behind. A partnership of 88 between two of the country’s rising stars, Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq, started the revival, but a target of 145 still looked too few. It was then that Abdur Rehman and Saeed Ajmal spun webs around the English batsmen, including a crazy period in which the last six wickets fell for 16 runs, and Pakistan had sealed an incredible series win. The whitewash inevitably followed, concluding one of Pakistan’s finest performances in their history.

Following the victory over England, there were high hopes for Pakistan’s next test series against Sri Lanka in June, but these were soon dashed following a first innings collapse in which they were dismissed for just 100, finally resulting in a massive 209 run defeat. The remaining two tests were drawn, but one of the major positives was that Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq both recorded centuries, cementing their spots in Pakistan’s middle order for what should be a lengthy period of time. 

In ODIs, the picture wasn’t quite so rosy, as Pakistan lost all three bilateral series they were involved in, against England, Sri Lanka and Australia, with chasing being a particularly difficult task. The silver lining however, was the Asia Cup, where despite a defeat to India, Pakistan won the title by defeating Bangladesh in a closely fought final. Misbah Ul-Haq still faces some pressure in this format, but if he can help seal the ODI series against India at the start of 2013, his critics may lay off him for a while.

As with ODIs, Pakistan were had a mixed bag in T20 cricket, winning nine of the 16 matches they played. Mohammad Hafeez is beginning to grow into his role as skipper, and if his recent form is anything to go by, we may well see Pakistan become a more dominant force in this format in the coming year. The team continued it’s remarkable consistency at T20 World Cups, reaching the semi-final stage yet again, but a spirited effort from Sri Lanka in Colombo meant they could go no further.

As for individual highlights, Saeed Ajmal stamped his mark on the world game, proving he is the leading spin bowler going around at the moment. He finished the year as Pakistan’s leading wicket –taker in all three formats, making his omission from the ICC Cricketer of the Year shortlist all the more baffling. Azhar Ali continues to progress nicely, he was Pakistan’s top run scorer in tests in 2012, closely followed by Mohammad Hafeez and Asad Shafiq, showing that the team isn’t as reliant on Younis Khan and Misbah as we might expect.

After several turbulent years, it could be argued that Pakistan’s biggest achievement was to stay away from any sort of controversy (apart from Abdur Rehman’s minor hiccup), something that is probably just as important as the on-field performances. 2013 looks set to be a tough year, particularly with the challenge of touring South Africa in February and the ICC Champions Trophy in June, which includes a mouth watering clash with India at Edgbaston. 

2012 began with one of Pakistan’s greatest ever achievements, so 2013 has a lot to live up to in the coming months.

  Discuss!