The Asia Cup hasn't always been memorable but this year's edition is finding it hard to go away. Pakistan won the cup, Bangladesh won hearts, and Sachin Tendulkar won back his poise thanks to a landmark hundred

Sometimes it is hard to make sense of defeat. On the brink of rescuing some dignity from the limited-overs half of England's tour, Pakistan threw away any hope of redemption

Pakistan's splendid over-achievement in the Test series preceded lifeless surrender in the one-day sequel

A whitewash means nothing when the next match begins, and Pakistan proved it in the first one-day international of their series against England

Misbah-ul-Haq's Pakistan worked a miracle to inflict a whitewash on the world's top side, only the fifth occasion that a Pakistan team has achieved that landmark

The Abu Dhabi pitch was easing up, the heavy roller would flatten it further. Team Misbah had batted too Misbah-ly, going at a crawl when a thrash or two would have eased nerves

Never in the field of cricket conflict have so many enjoyed a match played before so few. Pakistan's thumping victory in Dubai was accompanied by shrill cries of glory that echoed around a near-empty stadium

When Pakistan play England, to paraphrase Coldplay, every series is a watershed. Confrontations are frequent, disagreements a ritual

Undefeated in a Test series in 2011, Pakistan are condemned for a slow, unadventurous version of cricket that renders any success hollow

Don't bother looking at the umpire's finger when Shahid Afridi takes a wicket, just watch the man himself. The instant Afridi strikes his star-man pose, fingers pointing to the heavens, cue pandemonium

Misbah has the second-highest Test average for a captain after Don Bradman (minimum ten Tests). Why murmurings of discontent?

The convictions of Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif, and Mohammad Amir are no surprise, and their incarceration is nothing unexpected

I didn't know how I'd feel, a voyeur at the prosecution of Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif? There was no thrill at being party to historic events, only sadness, regret

Is any cricketer bigger than Pakistan? Imran Khan, the man who came closest, held a political rally yesterday in front of Pakistan's monument to liberty in Lahore

Anybody in search of final day heroics was best advised to look away from the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi. Pakistan toiled in attack, Sri Lanka toiled in defence

Ijaz Butt is a miracle man. It was a miracle that he survived so long, and a greater miracle that Pakistan cricket survived him

Indeed, you might not know Shoaib Akhtar as a comedian but, almost by accident, he has made the world laugh

In a week famous for sixty-fourth anniversaries, India and Pakistan might wish to reflect on the fruits of those intervening years of toil on the cricket field

India dominating in the Caribbean, Pakistan cricketers shining in an English domestic tournament, Sri Lanka winning at the home of cricket, Bangladesh a full member of the ICC, all rosy in the garden of South Asian cricket?

Imran Khan has described it as a suicide attack but you might wonder if there is anything left worth destroying?