Mushtaq praises Hussain's men for positive outlook

England's composure on and off the field is making an impression in Pakistan and after a 13 year absence, Nasser Hussain and his men are commanding respect among their opponents.

Leg-spinner Mushtaq Ahmed who with fellow spinners Saqlain Mushtaq and Shahid Afridi inflicted a heavy defeat over the tourists in the second one-day international in Lahore on Friday, said this England side was one of the best he had seen.

"They look good both on and off the field, they're talking positive and they seem to be acting positive," he commented after a practise session in Rawalpindi.

"You can tell if someone is positive straight away just by seeing them walk. If I'm bowling and a new batsman is coming out to the crease, you can tell straight away if he is confident and that is how England have been."

Over the years, England have gained a reputation in Pakistan as 'moaning minnies' with complaints about food, hotels, umpiring and conditions overshadowing the cricket.

But this time, things are different, Mushtaq agreed, though the age old problems England have in facing spin have still to be resolved.

"I have a lot of experience of playing county cricket and I've always taken a lot of wickets in England.

"We have the sort of spinners who can put a lot of spin on the ball and we also have variety between them so that is bound to cause problems for anyone.

"If you are playing against three different kinds of bowlers like England are, it makes it difficult to adjust as a batsman because you have different angles of attack.

"We also have home advantage and with England not playing spin that well, I would imagine that most of the wickets they play on in the Tests will favour spin."

The wicket at Rawalpindi is certainly likely to favour spin when the third one-day international gets underway at 7.00(GMT) on Monday. After an inspection, Pakistan captain Moin Khan claimed the surface was similar to the one at Lahore where England lost by eight wickets.