Yes, I'm still about though not having any games to go to, I've written a preview of the Pakistan-England series.
So England begin their series against Pakistan tomorrow in the neutral UAE in what is the first test for their number one Test Ranking.
After hammering India 4-0 at home in the summer Andrew Strauss and co. are at first glance the favourites against Misbah-ul-Haq's men who are ranked 5th. But looking deeper into it Pakistan have been one of the most improved sides of the last year after the spot-fixing scandal and with the likes of Abdur Rehman, Saeed Ajmal and all-round hero Mohammad Hafeez they have a strong spin attack and have played enough games in Dubai and Abu Dhabi to know that runs are their to be scored if you are prepared to wait for them.
England have looked shaky in their two warm-up games and have relied on 2nd innings runs and generous declarations to win. Alaistair Cook, Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott have all been in great form for the past year but and it would be a surprise if they all failed to adapt to the conditions. That said, England have historically struggled in Asia and there is no better time than now to show they are truly the best team in the world.
The loss of Tim Bresnan for the whole series is a blow for England and has probably scuppered any immediate chance of Monty Panesar playing as a 2nd spinner with Graeme Swann, despite taking 5 against the PCB XI last week. Chris Tremlett will probably be the lucky bowler who gets in ahead of Steve Finn.
Both matches so far in Dubai have been fairly slow, low scoring affairs meaning that a patient start will be required and may not prove good for the likes of Strauss who hasn't scored a test hundred since Brisbane in 2010.
Umar Akmal is the future of Pakistan's batting and was one of the few stand out players from the disaster-thon of Pakistan's 2010 tour of England so ought to play ahead of Asad Shafiq.
England's fast bowlers won't be able to get away with bowling short on a slowish track so the likes of Anderson could prosper most. Umar Gul will lead the Pakistan bowling and his late swing could prove decisive with the older ball.
A draw may well be likely, but any small mistakes from either side could easily cost them the game and possibly the series.
First Test 17-21st January, Dubai
Second Test 25-29th January, Abu Dhabi
Third Test 3-7th February, Dubai.
