The true scale of unpredictability

When Bob Woolmer met Javed Miandad for dinner soon after arriving in Pakistan, the man he replaced probably brought him up to date on the problems that afflict the Pakistan cricket team. Given Woolmer's reputedly meticulous nature, he was probably au fait with them anyway. But, in his third game in charge - and his first real one - it will have come as a relief of sorts for Woolmer, that he witnessed the true scale of the unpredictability that he has been hired to resolve at first hand, and that it happened sooner rather than later during his tenure.

The comprehensive defeat Sri Lanka handed to them, on paper, is disheartening. But it may come as small, even perverse, consolation that Pakistan's complicity in instigating their downfall equalled that of an increasingly ruthless Sri Lankan side. Woolmer will know, for example, Pakistan's batting - the architects of today's demise - over the last nine months or so has had more good days than bad, and that days like today are slowly - very slowly - becoming the exception rather than the rule. Against India in March, in fact, there were enough good days for it to divert criticism on to the bowling. But one of Woolmer's first tasks will be to ensure that the occasions where Pakistan implodes as they did today, and thus become more difficult to beat, are kept to the barest minimum.

He still won't be happy that a batsman with Youhana's experience and class can embarrass himself the way he did today. And he will now know why - to this day almost five years after his debut - Imran Nazir's capacity to succeed at international level is still questionable. He will also admit, maybe, that the Shoaib Malik experiment might not work and that it affects, adversely, the combustible nature of the lower order. And he will justifiably squirm at the schoolboy nature of the running between the wickets, if it wasn't an insult to schoolboys around the world.

But he is level-headed enough to know that not every day in the office will be a bad one. He will know that in Yasir Hameed, and to a lesser extent, the likes of Imran Farhat, Taufeeq Umar and Asim Kamal, he has something tangible to work with. He will also take note of the uncustomary spirit and resistance with which Pakistan bowled and hope that this, unlike the batting, is not a one-off. They have in the past crumbled when defending small totals - Lords in 1999 and 2001 against Australia come to mind immediately - but to take this game beyond thirty overs, and to pick up three wickets will have lessened the pain a touch. But importantly he will have spent another day familiarising himself with Team Pakistan.

But if Pakistan's problems are familiar, then the same cannot be said of Sri Lanka's form. Sometimes a loss can be good for the soul, and Sri Lanka's fighting defeat in Australia appears to have re-ignited in them a previously absent clinical competence. Their batting, at home at least, has never been their main concern. It is their bowling that, Murali and Vaas apart, has often looked toothless. But with Nuwan Zoysa and Upal Chandana continuing to build on the spirit they showed in Australia, the bowling has assumed a more incisive guise.

Both bowlers have been notoriously inconsistent and Zoysa, in particular, has been prone to injury. How well Sri Lanka do here and in the future depends in large part on these two prolonging their good run. And if it is backed up by the type of electric fielding they displayed today, their victories over the two traditional subcontinent powerhouses might assume a more significant hue than many would admit to.

Ultimately, perhaps, to infer too much from either team's performances is inconsequential. The Asia Cup has been strangely bereft of atmosphere, significance and, worryingly, of consequence. Perhaps, the format is too bloated, and there are too many non-competitive matches. Perhaps it is because tougher one-day challenges lie in wait later in the year for most teams. Perhaps it is because that for some of the participants, winning the Asia Cup, although a pleasant bonus, isn't the only goal. For some, like India, it is about a little tinkering to find the right balance. For Woolmer and Pakistan, it is more about discovering each other, about accommodating and adjusting to foreign ideas and culture. For Sri Lanka, it is perhaps to build on their combative display against the Australians. In which case, both the hosts and Pakistan will have gone one step further today to reaching their objectives.