The outcome of the third England Test at Edgbaston, Birmingham on Sunday showed that Pakistan batting would remain unpredictable and below par. They will never learn how to come out of difficult situations and bat with responsibility. The way Pakistan batted for the second time yesterday, they did get into a tangle once again to surrender in an abject manner. The way Pakistan have been batting, so far in this four-match Test series, has not been convincing at all. A lot more responsibility ought to have been shown by Misbahul Haq and his charges but they were unable to cope with the seam and swing. The way batsmen fell to poor shots, despite having so much experience, was really shameful. In brief, Pakistan lacked batting depth. It will be a tough defeat to take for Pakistan who were dominant over the first two days of the game before losing their way over the two second innings. Conversely, England’s resilience to fight back makes this one of their finest wins in recent times – they are excellent frontrunners in a game, but questions have sometimes been asked about their ability to claw back. There was little evidence of dependability or the skill from Mohammad Hafeez, Younus Khan, Sarfraz Ahmad, Asad Shafiq or even Misbah. Younus in crisis is a brave batsmen but somehow he appears to have lost that golden touch in this series and appears to be struggling with his reflexes and form. Sami Aslam, playing his first Test of the series, had again batted superbly for 70 following the opener’s first-innings 82. But a rare misjudgement by the 20-year-old left-hander ended his innings. Aslam’s performance was in sharp contrast to that of his opening partner Hafeez. A Herculean effort was what Pakistan needed to bring some kind of sanity in their second innings batting set up. But they failed miserably by 141 runs. Saving matches, when faced with big targets such as 300 plus, is always an uphill task. Such situations always remind one of the marathon innings of 337 by ‘Little Master’ Hanif Mohammad who in 1957 Barbados Test batted for more than three days in a six-day Test to earn an unbelievable draw. But to be a batsman of a class one would need power of concentration, patience and a big heart besides a flawless technique to cope with the situation. There seems no one in the present Pakistan squad who could show consistency and determination. This batting inconsistency is the Achilles heal of Pakistan. Fast bowling has traditionally been Pakistan’s big strength. They have, arguably, the most potent pace-bowling attack. But their batting woes have also been well-documented. Having been set 343 in 84 overs, Pakistan were steadily placed on 69 for 1 at lunch but it all changed when the ball started to move. England’s quick bowlers produced magnificent displays of reverse swing, sending Pakistan tumbling from the relative comfort. The England bowling attack, which by no means is world-beating, made Pakistan batsmen – every single one of them – look like amateurs in their second innings. The match not only explained the Pakistan batsmen’s technical struggles but also the horrendous shot-making decisions and the shambolic running between the wickets that helped England to take 2-1 lead in the series.