WHAT matters most in a contest is the result in the end. And England despite their mindless decision of not enforcing a follow on and then delay declaration in their second innings would no doubt be forgiven for an impressive comeback in the series with a 330-run win at Old Trafford.

Having taken a near about four hundred-run lead on the first innings, England did not have to use rocket science to make a sensible decision and that was to immediately enforce a follow on. Instead, they batted on mindlessly through the third afternoon and even Monday morning before putting Pakistan in again.

Not surprisingly, Alastair Cook attracted severe criticism and rightly so for being timid and thoughtless, delaying what seemed inevitable and that was to get Pakistan once again in a tangle.

And the way Pakistan batted for the second time, they did get into a tangle once again to surrender abjectly.

Pakistan, they way they have been batting so far in this match, has not been convincing at all. A lot more responsibility ought to have been shown by Misbah-ul-Haq’s men but they were unable to cope the seam and swing and a number of batsmen fell to poor shots.

There was little evidence of responsibility or the skill from openers Mohammad Hafeez or Shan Masood. Or, for that matter, Younis Khan who for once looked to have settled down but then clouted one needlessely to long on region to get caught.

If there ever was a bunny in this Pakistan side for a bowler, then certainly it was Shan Masood who for the sixth time fell to James Anderson, starting from the Tests in the UAE.

Younis in crisis is a brave batsmen but somehow he appears to have lost that golden touch in this series and appears to be struggling with his reflexes and form.

A Herculean effort was what Pakistan needed to bring some kind of sanity in their batting set up. Saving matches, when faced with such massive scores such as 565, is no child’s play.

Such situations always remind me of the marathon innings of 337 by ‘Little Master’ Hanif Mohammad who in 1957 Barbados Test batted for more than three days in a six-day Test to earn an unbelievable draw.

Pakistan having followed on then were 403 runs behind and faced certain defeat. But to be a batsman of Hanif’s class one would need power of concentration, responsibility, patience and a big heart besides a flawless technique to cope with the situation. There is no one today to match his skills as he was a batsmen from a rare breed.

In this Pakistan side, I have always mentioned that there are not many who could be ranked in the first five of the best around.

Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq and Sarfraz Ahmed are the ones who could be relied upon. But in the ongoing series only Misbah and Asad Shafiq have shown so far that they can cope with good bowling.

On a batting track Pakistan should have done better than they have done. No team has ever chased a mammoth target as this in a Test or in a first-class match. Close to the fourth day Pakistan was no less better off because they squandered their opportunity of making use of flat track.

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2016