There was a dramatic change in the behaviour of the Abu Dhabi pitch on the final day of the first Test. During the first four days the wicket didn’t have nearly as much turn as it had on the fifth day.

The rough spots became quite big and the spinners could really trouble the batsmen.

And then there was the final-day pressure on us, under which we pushed the panic button.

After losing two early wickets, I felt we had regained some control. But then we made more mistakes that nearly cost us the match. Mohammad Hafeez was run out and Younis Khan and I played very poor shots. Those were the three mistakes which put us in trouble.

We have to learn from these mistakes and be careful in the next two Tests.

In the aftermath of the Test there were some opinions shared whether the umpires should have the right to call off the game in the fading light or not. My opinion is the right should stay with the umpires.

Umpires call of the first Test amid failing light // Getty

If the choice is given to the batsmen then the team which is in a better situation will want to continue the game, which is not right. The umpires follow a certain reading on the light meter and take decisions according to it.

These rules are set before the match, therefore the decision regarding when to call off the game should stay with the umpires.

There was also plenty of criticism that the pitch was too friendly for batting. There is no doubt that the pitch we played on was quite different from previous Tests in Abu Dhabi. There used to be assistance for spinners from the third day but this wicket showed turn only on the fifth day. There wasn’t any bounce or carry which made the batting easy.

But I must say that we have to see the other side of the picture too. We were playing without Yasir Shah and both teams made mistakes in the field.

Hafeez and Asad Shafiq were dropped whereas Shoaib Malik was caught off a no-ball, and then we also dropped Alastair Cook twice. Therefore I am of the opinion that if the chances were held and Yasir was playing the outcome of the match could have been totally different.

Yasir's absence was a huge setback for us. The pitch was not bad for a wrist spinner and he has been our match-winner in the recent past. Sadly we didn’t have his replacement either.

Yasir lays prone in the nets at Abu Dhabi // Getty

I think his absence was a mental relief for England before the match. I will again say that had he played the result could have been different. It would have been really difficult for England to bat against him after we had put on a mammoth 523.

But I am glad that Yasir has recovered now. He is 90 per cent fit and inshallah will play the second Test.

He will strengthen our spin arsenal in Dubai. We all know that England batsmen struggle against the spinners and this was the reason I opened with Malik and Zulfiqar Babar in the fourth innings.

I knew the spinners would unsettle their batsmen and might even take a few wickets and that’s exactly what happened.

The other idea behind opening with spinners was to maintain the over rate. The plan was to first operate with the slow bowlers and later with the quicks so that the over rate did not dwindle.

Even though the spinners didn’t perform according to the expectations in the first innings they will remain our trump card in the coming matches, especially in Dubai which has history of being spin friendly.

There is also a possibility, albeit not much, that we might go in with three specialist spinners and one fast bowler but we will take that decision only after having the final look at the wicket. If it is dry and has help for the slow bowlers then we might play three spinners.

Our spinners, however, now need to come up with some different plans to tackle the English batsmen who will be high in confidence after their performance in Abu Dhabi.

Pakistan had no option but to applaud Cook's epic knock // Getty

I must praise Alastair Cook here. That the game slipped from our hands was due to his brilliant innings. He has solid defence and technique against spin bowlers.

Even on the previous tour in 2012 he played some really good innings against Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman. In the ODIs he scored back-to-back hundreds followed by 80-odd runs against the bowling attack which also had Shahid Afridi.

Among the overseas batsmen who have done well in Asia I think Cook is the best player I have seen after AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla.

Talking about individuals, I would like to mention two more players. First is Adil Rashid, who made a tremendous comeback after going wicket-less in the first innings.

A debut to remember // Getty Images

The two most important things for a leg-spinner are temperament and consistency to bowl in the right areas and Rashid has both of these traits. Although he does not have too many varieties I think England have unearthed a good spinner there.

Second is Younis Khan. I congratulate him on becoming the most prolific batsmen in Pakistan's history.

Quick Single: Younis, pride of Pakistan

When I made my Test debut in Auckland in 2001 it was Younis’ comeback match. He has been my role model since. The way he handles pressure and makes comebacks even during the matches is something our youngsters need to look at.

Talent-wise he might not be equal to other Pakistan greats, such as Javed Miandad, Inzamam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Yousuf, but it is due to his discipline and professionalism that today he is Pakistan’s highest run-scorer.

Younis salutes Test ton No.30 // Getty

We have some positives from the first Test which we will take to Dubai. Shoaib Malik not only scored a brilliant double-century, he has also filled the void of the fifth spinner. Malik’s form is a good sign for us. Also the way our pacers, especially Wahab Riaz, bowled on a benign surface is something which is a huge positive for us.

Most of us before the series were thinking that Pakistan would be the favourites and the fans were even expecting another clean sweep victory against England.

But as I wrote in my first column, you cannot predict victories based on past performances. So after the first Test the series has become even more interesting. Both the teams are even now and I think the next two Tests will be really exciting. You will see some interesting cricket in the coming weeks.