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LAHORE: Former Test cricketer and chief selector Saleem Altaf said Pakistan had outplayed England in all the departments to register a thumping win over the latter in the first Test of three-match series at Dubai Stadium on Thursday.
'Pakistan have won 14 Tests against England in the past but I think this was the most humiliating one because it was completed inside three days,' Saleem said while hailing the convincing 10-wicket win of Pakistan in Dubai.
'Though the conditions in the UAE and a five-month gap from international cricket could have made a bit of difference for England, the magnificent spin bowling of Saeed Ajmal baffled the opposition and set the tone for the victory,' he said.
'In fact, they couldn't read Saeed's spin magic well and threw away their wickets by making mistakes,' Saleem said.
However, he warned the Pakistan team to avoid complacency as the England team was a professional side and could stage a strong come back in Abu Dhabi.
'But in order to stage a come back in the series, England will have to read the mystery of Saeed's spin, otherwise I feel Pakistan will win the series by a 2-0 margin, he said.
'I think England made a big mistake by not picking up left-arm spinner Monty Panesar in their squad for the first Test, but now they are compelled to strengthen the spin department for the coming matches,' said the former fast bowler.
Saleem reminded that England's performances at home and away was a big contrast and they really needed to improve their overseas record.
'England had visited Pakistan in 2005 after winning the series against the mighty Australian, but here they lost Test matches to Pakistan in Multan and Lahore. Recently too, they washed out India in England but in India they were beaten squarely,' he noted.
Halling Saeed's performance for his 10 wickets in the match, Saleem said the bowler had superseded Graeme Swann as the best off-spinner in the world. He also rejected the outburst of some England critics regarding Saeed's bowling action.
'The flexibility given by the ICC allowing the bowlers to bend the arm to 15 degrees had ended the suspect action dilemma for most bowlers and the world should recognise Saeed as one of the best off-spinner of this age,' he said.
He dispelled the impression that Andrew Strauss decision to bat first had backfired in the Test and said in fact the England batsmen had played reckless shots and paid the price.
'The pitches in the UAE are batting-friendly and that is why Pakistan's matches against South Africa (in 2010) had remained high-scoring affairs and earned criticism for their slow-nature. So England have only their batsmen to blame for the defeat,' concluded Saleem.
