This was almost two series in one. The first part, the opening Test, was played on a dead surface in Multan upon which England broke some astonishing runscoring records.
Pakistan, beaten in six consecutive Tests and winless in 11 at home, opted for radical change. Out went star batter Babar Azam, and pace bowlers Naseem Shah and Shaheen Shah Afridi.
In came Noman and Sajid. The pitch in Multan was reused, then the surface in Rawalpindi was dried with heaters and fans. Coach Jason Gillespie was effectively sidelined by the tactics, but success has been delivered.
Remarkably, England scored more runs in one innings in the first Test, 823-7 declared, than they did in four innings in the other two Tests put together. It is the first time they have gone 1-0 up then lost a three-Test series.
To merely pin the turnaround on the conditions would be a disservice to Pakistan. England had the benefit of winning the toss in the third Test, then frittered it away.
The tourists’ spinners were no match for the home tweakers, while England’s batters struggled for the right tempo on the Rawalpindi pitch, possibly spooked by all the talk of a raging turner.
On the second afternoon, when Saud Shakeel’s century was leading Pakistan’s recovery from 177-7, England were bafflingly passive with their tactics.
England, who preach stability and togetherness, will not panic or make wholesale changes, not least because the conditions were so alien. After five Test tours of Asia since the start of 2021, they do no return until a visit to Bangladesh in 2027.
Still, questions will travel to New Zealand with them, not least over the form of captain Stokes and vice-captain Ollie Pope.
