An inconsequential end

There are a number of ways you could look at Pakistan's performance in the Asia Cup. You could, like some in the media, think that Pakistan were the worst of the major teams at the Asia Cup, and that they had plummeted to depths even lower than the losses to India had taken them. They were shoddy in the field, batted poorly, bowled with the discipline - and the mathematical nous - of eight-year-olds, and in short, would have done better had they not turned up at all.

Or on the flip side, you could conceivably argue that - take your pick - one bad day, one point, five runs, Virender Sehwag's increasingly golden arm, was the only difference between Pakistan making it to the final and missing out.

With more conviction, you can conclude that in a tournament comprising, in effect, only two real matches, forming any conclusion at all is a risky proposition. Given that Pakistan lost one as comprehensively as they won the other in the space of three days - and let's not kid ourselves, it isn't as if they haven't done that before - offering any judgment seems foolhardy.

Pakistan's scratchy win against a swiftly regressing Bangladesh was an inconsequential end in a tournament where results for Pakistan were largely inconsequential. No, this Asia Cup was about Pakistan and Bob Woolmer exploring each other a little, almost like a couple on a second or third date, although exposing your weaknesses and strengths as eagerly and swiftly as Pakistan did is rarely recommended in dating manuals. Neverthless, Woolmer will be relieved that he was witness to the Jekyll and Hyde nature of Pakistan's cricket so soon, if only because he will have begun to grasp the enormity of his task.

Otherwise, there was little of note or surprise from Pakistan's performances over the last year. The batting, although it has strengthened, remains some way short of reliability and the culprits are no surprise. The depth of the opening dilemma was exemplified in the forlorn shape of Imran Nazir. Given an unexpectedly long run after Imran Farhat's injury, Nazir's batting was painful to watch, as much for the leaden-footed nature of it as for the feeling - a sinking one - that he may have had his chance. It sounds ludicrous to say that about someone so young, but like another Pakistani enigma (and there are many), Shahid Afridi, the worry is that still, after all these years, he doesn't seem to have evolved as a player.

If the middle order were strong enough to cope, the problem while not rectified could be somewhat lessened. But Yousuf Youhana's struggles coupled with the inadequacies of Younis Khan compound the pressure on Yasir Hameed and Inzamam, and as in the match against Sri Lanka, the results can still be horrific.

The bowling proved that little was new, aside from the fact that when they apply themselves to the task at hand, rather than to the hype surrounding them, they are a dangerously effective unit. Shoaib Akhtar's experimentation with the shortened run-up was short-lived, but his threat, thankfully wasn't. And although they are still beset by indiscipline, Mohammad Sami and Shabbir Ahmed too were incisive and refreshed. Additionally, the fact that Abdur Razzaq, in the games against Sri Lanka and India, began to look just a fraction like the bowler he once was, will also come as a pleasant revelation to Woolmer.

But perhaps the biggest surprise, and plus, came in the form of Shoaib Malik. Forget that his promotion to No. 3 elicited as much surprise as it did derision and still remains, despite his success, little more than a short-term solution. Remember, instead for a moment the blistering 82 he scored against South Africa last October coming in lower down the order. The two innings, scored in such contrasting manners and match situations, are testament to his growing versatility as a player, and it is this quality, more than his ability to bat at number three, which holds so much promise for Pakistan. It helps, too, that he is developing as a bowler and is among the better fielders in the side.

If ever there was a good time for Pakistan not to win a tournament, it was here. You just feel that had they won, or reached the final even, it might have glossed over areas that are in need of resolving sooner rather than later. In fact, you can argue, it was ideal for Woolmer to have seen the black, white and grey of the team he is to build so early on for it will only help him as he begins his three-year tenure with Pakistan. The first of those three brings with it stiffer challenges, the ICC Champions Trophy, a tour of Australia and the big one - the return tour against India among them. The honeymoon is now officially over.