Andy Flower has blamed England’s poor batting display for their Test series whitewash by Pakistan.

The tourists managed to make more than 200 only twice on the way to a 3-0 defeat in Dubai – and the England coach admits he was left disappointed by his side’s batting performance, after their bowlers performed superbly to put Andrew Strauss’s men in a good position to win both the second and third Tests.

“We were soundly beaten and it was a very disappointing result for us,” Flower told ECBtv.

“We came out here with high hopes of carrying on our great form in Test cricket and we haven’t been good enough to do that. So it’s very disappointing.

“If we batted better we could have won this series.”

The 43-year-old England coach believes the decision to use two fast bowlers and two spin bowlers provided his side with good variety.

“The bowlers were outstanding and they put us in positions to win Test matches in both the second and third Tests,” Flowers added.

“But unfortunately are batting didn’t back them up. The bowling skills have been excellent, their commitment has been excellent as well. And the combination of using to fast bowlers and two spinners has worked for us.

“So it was nice to see that combination work for us and that was an important lesson for us going to Sri Lanka.

“The skills against the spinners has not been good enough and we haven’t learnt quickly enough.

“We played two first class games and then three Test matches and our batting has been under par all the way through so there is a lot of work to do both in the lead-up to this one-day series which is very short and then on into the Sri Lanka tour.”

Ian Bell’s omission from England’s ODI and T20 squads for the forthcoming fixtures against Pakistan could prove to be a watershed moment in his career.

The 29-year-old, a veteran of 108 ODIs, may well have played his last limited overs match for England.

Bell suffered a torrid time in the recent Test series, averaging just 8.5 runs and looking uncomfortable against the Pakistani spinners, particularly Saeed Ajmal.

His poor form and uncertainty against spin was compounded by the mystery of Ajmal’s doosra and he was unable to pick the off-spinner’s magic ball.

And Tuesday’s news that Kevin Pietersen will open the batting – coupled with 21-year-old Jos Buttler’s inclusion in the ODI squad for the first time – will do little to inspire thoughts of a future return.

England coach Andy Flower is renowned for making ruthless but fair decisions based on current form, whilst also offering young players their chance on the big stage.

Which is why, considering Bell’s performances so far in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and the fact he has passed 50 just once in his last 14 ODIs, his exclusion seems fair.

Conversely, Buttler’s form has been impressive. He has struck two centuries and one half-century in his last five matches for the England Lions whilst on tour in Sri Lanka, justifying his selection.

Unfortunately for Bell, his biggest worry happens to be Flower’s biggest hope: that the limited overs squads, boosted by talented youngsters such as Buttler and Jonny Bairstow, will gel quickly and evolve into world-beating teams.

If this happens then the Warwickshire batsman will quickly be forgotten, blown away by the whirlwind that is modern international cricket.

Flower, however, refused to slam the door on his batsman’s ODI career.

“This does not mean that his ODI career is necessarily over,” he told Sky Sports. “He’s not too old to fight his way back into the side and he’s a very fine international cricketer.

“But it depends how this group of players plays, whether any gaps open up in the future, and if he can fight his way back in then good on him.”

Whether he is able to fight his way back will be a big ‘if’. Undone once again by spin as he was in the 2005 Ashes series by Shane Warne, he will find it harder to bounce-back this time.

Ultimately, a Bell on current form is a sorry sight for England fans. They will have become used to the remodelled version; the confident, exciting batsman who last year compiled 950 Test runs at an average of 118.75.

But what a difference a year makes. The current model is a shadow of last year’s focused and free-flowing stroke-maker, and fans and pundits alike will be hoping he can address his failings against spin and rediscover that scintillating 2011 form.

So is this the end for England’s purest player? Only Bell has the answer to that, but with Flower ringing the changes the curtain looks to be closing on his ODI career.

Uncapped spinner Danny Briggs has been included in England’s one-day squad to face Pakistan in Dubai – but selectors have left batsman Ian Bell out of the 16-man team.

Bell has lost his place to Jos Buttler, who made his international Twenty20 debut last summer against India but is yet to play for England in the 50-over format. Both Briggs and Buttler have spent the winter with England Lions on tour in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Tim Bresnan’s inclusion in both squads is subject to a fitness assessment during the preparation period as he continues his recovery following an elbow operation.

The one-day series gets under way on 13 February in Abu Dhabi, with England looking to restore some pride after stumbling to their first Test series whitewash since 2007 against Pakistan.

Stuart Broad will then captain a 15-man Twenty20 squad that includes Nottinghamshire’s Alex Hales for the three-match series, which gets under way on 23 February.

“We have selected two squads that include both experienced international players and younger players who have performed strongly for England Lions in recent months and deserve an opportunity to further test themselves against quality opposition,” said national selector Geoff Miller.

“Playing against Pakistan in the UAE will be challenging but it is important that these players continue to develop their skills so that we are able to make strides in limited overs cricket particularly on the subcontinent.”

England one-day squad: Alastair Cook (Essex, capt), James Anderson (Lancashire), Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire), Ravi Bopara (Essex), Tim Bresnan (Yorkshire), Danny Briggs (Hampshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Jos Buttler (Somerset), Jade Dernbach (Surrey), Steven Finn (Middlesex), Craig Kieswetter (Somerset), Eoin Morgan (Middlesex), Samit Patel (Nottinghamshire), Kevin Pietersen (Surrey), Graeme Swann (Nottinghamshire), Jonathan Trott (Warwickshire).

England Twenty20 squad: Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire, capt), James Anderson (Lancashire), Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire), Ravi Bopara (Essex), Tim Bresnan (Yorkshire), Danny Briggs (Hampshire), Jos Buttler (Somerset), Jade Dernbach (Surrey), Steven Finn (Middlesex), Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire), Craig Kieswetter (Somerset), Eoin Morgan (Middlesex), Samit Patel (Nottinghamshire), Kevin Pietersen (Surrey), Graeme Swann (Nottinghamshire).

Pakistan one-day squad: Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Mohammad Hafeez, Imran Farhat, Azhar Ali, Younus Khan, Asad Shafiq, Umar Akmal, Hammad Azam, Adnan Akmal (wk), Shahid Afridi, Abdur Rehman, Saeed Ajmal, Umar Gul, Junaid Khan, Aizaz Cheema, Wahab Riaz.

Pakistan Twenty20 squad: Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Mohammad Hafeez, Imran Farhat, Asad Shafiq, Umar Akmal, Awais Zia, Hammad Azam, Adnan Akmal (wk), Shahid Afridi, Abdur Rehman, Saeed Ajmal, Umar Gul, Junaid Khan, Aizaz Cheema, Wahab Riaz.

England were ranked the No1 Test side in the world and were overwhelming favourites coming into the series, but the tourists were undone by a unified and disciplined Pakistan side led by the unflappable Misbah-ul-Haq.

Baffled batsmen

The English batsmen endured a torrid series, posting a total over 200 in just two of their six innings, with none of them registering a century. Matt Prior was the only batsman to average above 30 and emerge from the UAE with his credibility intact; the others bamboozled by Pakistan’s spin twins Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman, who shared 43 series wickets. Kevin Pietersen lauded Prior as England’s best player of spin at the start of the series, and how he longed for a share of his team-mate’s ability. England’s number four fell victim to the spin duo’s charms five times in the series, twice to Rehman, taking his career dismissals by left-arm spinners to 22.

Pietersen’s fellow middle-order companions fared little better. Ian Bell came into the series with a reputation as a fine player of spin, but left it looking like a rookie. His 51 runs at an average of 8.5 were in stark contrast to last year’s Test average of 118.75 and his performances harked back to the Bell of old; fidgety, unfocused and outwitted. He looked as clueless against Ajmal as he did against Warne in 2005, and he must address his failings if he is to bounce back once more.

Given the nature of the defeat and the manner in which England’s vulnerability to spin was exposed, there will inevitably be calls for players to be dropped. Heading this list will be Eoin Morgan, who averaged just 13.66 and appeared out of his depth against the Pakistani spinners. Renowned for possessing swift feet, Morgan often found himself trapped on the crease, as his dismissal to Rehman in the first Test showed. As entertaining as his tactic of trying to attack the spinners in the third Test was, it smacked of desperation, and Ravi Bopara may find himself batting at number six in Sri Lanka.

Brilliant bowlers

Although there was little encouragement to come out of the series for the batsmen, England’s bowlers can hold their heads high. Dismissing a Pakistan side containing the experienced Younis Khan and Misbah for 99 in the final Test was a remarkable achievement and were it not for poor batting, the series may have panned out differently.

The talented bowling unit which elevated England to number one in the Test rankings may have been reshuffled here, but the outcome was effectively the same. Stuart Broad and James Anderson bowled accurately and adapted well to the conditions, while Monty Panesar and Graeme Swann performed well in tandem and picked up 27 wickets between them.

Panesar’s performances will be most pleasing for Flower and spin-bowling coach Mushtaq Ahmed. Returning to the Test side for the first time since 2009, the Sussex spinner took 14 wickets in the two Tests he played in and bowled with control to upstage his spin twin Swann and claim England’s man of the series award.

Misbah-ul-Haq means business

It is impossible to review this series correctly without praising Pakistan’s overall performance. Beaten by England in 2010 and discredited by subsequent spot-fixing debacle, Pakistan cricket could have fallen off the radar. Enter Misbah, Pakistan’s saviour.

The experienced batsman has developed a collective, winning culture within his side and his calm aura appears to have spread. He has developed a team that pulls together, rather than a group of individuals, one that is slowly bringing pride back to Pakistani cricket. Azhar Ali, often accused of losing concentration in pressure situations and throwing his wicket away, bore resemblance to his skipper when he batted for nine hours, registering a disciplined 157 and guiding his side to victory in the final match of the series. Pakistan remain unbeaten under their new leader and now have the achievement of whitewashing the number one Test side to brag about. But this is not Misbah’s way; he will just carry on unfazed in his quest for success. Watch out world.

England captain Andrew Strauss is hopeful the selectors won’t rush into panic changes ahead of his side’s next Test series in Sri Lanka, despite crashing to a 3-0 series whitewash against Pakistan in Dubai.

Andy Flower’s men lost the third and final Test by 71 runs after throwing away a huge opportunity for victory by toppling the hosts for just 99 on day one.

Man-of-the-series Saeed Ajmal proved to be England’s chief nemesis with the ball again in this match, knocking over the top order in the second-innings with figures of 4-67.

But the game was won by Pakistan’s batsman in their second-innings with Azhar Ali (157) and Younis Khan’s (127) third-wicket stand of 200 wiping out England’s slender advantage from the first innings and taking the game beyond the tourists.

It was a familiar tale for England’s batsmen, who have endured a torrid time at the hands of Ajmal and spin partner Abdur Rehman in the Emirates as they have struggled to cope with conditions on the sub-continent.

England’s middle order of Kevin Pietersen, Eoin Morgan and Ian Bell have averaged just 11 runs from 29 innings played between them on this tour, which will have to be addressed moving forward.

However, although honest about his side’s shortcomings, captain Strauss backed his team to bounce back and show why they have reached the pinnacle of Test cricket over the last few years.

“I hope we don’t make panic changes. We haven’t been in the business of panic changes and chopping and changing the side too much so I don’t expect we’ll start now,” Strauss told Sky Sports.

“I’m a great believer that you don’t become a great team overnight and on the same note you don’t become a bad team overnight.

“I’ve still got a lot of confidence in this team going forward but clearly there are some lessons to be learned.

“The obvious one is to post bigger scores on the board in this part of the world and to try and play spin bowling better.

“But I think we were a lot better at the end of the third Test than we were at the start of the first – but that’s too little too late.

“Yes, I think there are some regrets about how we played in the first Test, where the tone for the series is set.

“But every time you come across these sorts of things in your career you find a way of overcoming them and that’s what we’ve got to do now.

“I’ve got great faith in our players, we’ve got some outstanding cricketers, and they’ve shown that time and time again.

“In a way, this is an eye-opener for us that things don’t get easier, they get harder for us, so we have to keep working hard with the ODIs coming up and thinking ahead to Sri Lanka.

“There were some really good performances from our guys over the Test matches so we shouldn’t run away from that – but we weren’t good enough to be able to take those promising starts and nail home the final advantage.

“You’ve got to give credit to the way that Pakistan fought their way back into the game and we have got to go away and make sure we don’t repeat those mistakes.”

Alastair Cook admits England will have to dig deep if they are to prevent a 3-0 series whitewash by Pakistan after day two of the third and final Test in Dubai.

Pakistan ended the day on 222-2, a 180-run lead over Andrew Strauss’s tourists as Younus Khan (115 not out) shared an unbroken third-wicket stand of 194 with Azhar Ali (75 not out).

Strauss had earlier made 56 but England were soon bowled out for 141, with left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman notching up figures of 5-40.

“If we sit here when we turn up tomorrow and say ‘well, we’ve lost this game already’ then we might as well give Pakistan victory right now,” said Cook. “If we’re thinking that in our dressing room, we might as well just not bother turning up.

“It will take some serious guts to drag ourselves out of this. But there are some bloody good players in that dressing room, and I hope we can stand up.”

“We all know we’re a very long way behind in this game. “When we do get round to batting again – we’ve had our struggles on this tour – it’s going to take some serious character from the top six to turn it around.

“Anything is possible, but it’s going to take a lot of mental toughness to deliver it.

“I know we’ve got the players in there. But there’s only so many times you can keep saying that – we’re going to have to get out there and do it.”

James Anderson believes England are in for a real battle if they are to claim victory in the third and final Test against Pakistan in Dubai.

A stunning display of seam-bowling from Anderson and Stuart Broad looked to have put England firmly in the ascendency on day one, as Pakistan were dismissed for just 99, before yet another middle-order collapse left the tourists teetering on 104-6 at the close.

Captain Andrew Strauss, who has struggled to find any form with the bat so far this series, was the only man to offer any real resistance, finishing 41 not-out.

But Alastair Cook, Jonathan Trott, Ian Bell, Eoin Morgan and Matt Prior all lost their wickets cheaply, with Kevin Pietersen again exposed by his weak technique against the left-hand spinners – falling LBW to the DRS system when looking good on 32.

Broad had earlier helped himself to 4-36 in a devastating open spell alongside strike-partner Anderson (3-35) as the duo accounted for Pakistan’s top five batsmen for a miserly 21 runs inside the first hour.

A brief spell of defiance from Asad Shafiq and Saeed Ajmal was soon broken up by the spin of Monty Panesar and when Anderson polished off the tale by cleaning out Gul, it looked like England were in business.

But instead Anderson was back on the field much earlier than he would have liked, pulled in as Night-Watchman to protect Strauss – and the seamer is in no doubt that Andy Flower’s men are in for a real fight to maintain their current world No1 Test ranking.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t get off to a great start with the bat – and it looks like it’s going to be a battle for the next few days,” Anderson told the BBC.

“All our guys are confident – but they’re probably just not spending the time at the crease they would like.

“Pakistan are bowling some really good balls to get us out. It was probably a good day to be watching, but a pretty nerve-wracking one for the players.

“It’s going to be a really tight match. I’ve got to hang around as much as I can and bat for Straussy.”

“He’s batted a while on that pitch and is used to the pace of it, so he can maybe score a bit more freely.”

The cavalry rode in to save Sri Lankan cricket once more, but won’t be hanging around for long.

Mahela Jayawardene revealed he will only remain as captain of his country for a year after taking over from Tillakaratne Dilshan, who resigned on Monday.

“This is a juncture where the Sri Lanka cricket team needs someone’s help,” Jayawardene told journalists in Colombo. “I told the selectors that I will at the most remain the captain for a year, and we came to an agreement.”

The Sri Lankan captaincy has been passed like a relay baton between Dilshan, Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara in recent times. None of them really seem too passionate about the job on a long-term basis and the selectors seem unable to earmark a potential, younger successor.

Jayawardene was a successful captain between 2004 and 2011 and the Sri Lankan side thrived under him. In all formats he led the side in 133 matches, winning 77, a percentage of 58. He resigned to allow a successor to build a side that would be capable of challenging for the 2011 World Cup.

Sangakkara was the man given the challenge and, like his predecessor performed well winning 54 per cent of his 81 matches. Sri Lanka reached the World Cup final but lost out to a somewhat ominous Indian side, playing on home soil.

Sangakkara walked away from his duties after the final giving the same reasons as Jayawardene. Sangakkara’s wish was that a young captain could be given four years in the job to build a squad for the next World Cup.

However, the Sri Lankan selectors seemed to go against Sangakkara’s advice. They appointed the 34-year-old Dilshan in a decision that has gone dramatically pear-shaped.

Dilshan won just 11 matches since taking over the captaincy and resigned after criticism emerged over his leadership.

For a struggling side, rebuilding after the loss of Muttiah Muralitharan, Chaminda Vaas and others, the Sri Lankan chiefs have seriously dented their cricketing future by appointing Dilshan. And by then reverting back to type in asking Jayawardene to fill in, they have showed that they have not learned from their mistakes. A perfect opportunity to build for the future after Dilshan’s resignation had presented itself, but disappointingly, they have decided to play safe instead.

This strategy cannot go on forever, all three former captains are well into their 30’s and they will not be playing for much longer. Admittedly, there is only one stand out candidate for the captaincy, and the Sri Lankan selectors must be painfully aware of that.

Angelo Mathews has been vice captain for a number of series’ now and is surely the Sri Lankan captain elect. However, he is just 24 years old and is already the side’s premier all rounder after just 22 Test matches.

There is a huge responsibility in leading a side while fulfilling all-rounder duties, just ask Andrew Flintoff. However, if the authorities see something in Mathews then they need to get him into the role as soon as possible. A young captain can bring fresh ideas and a fearlessness that Dilshan perhaps didn’t carry with him, having succeeded two very iconic captains.

Replacing a failed captain in Dilshan, and rebuilding the side would be a much easier task for Mathews than taking over from the large shadow that is Jayawardene. Should Jayawardene revitalise the side and turnaround their results, it would be extremely difficult for Mathews, who has limited senior captaincy experience, to carry that on.

Jayawardene told the media that he wants to groom a young side as well as a captain during the year that he is in charge.

If he succeeds he would have done his country a great service, but perhaps he could have refused the captaincy all together to help his country even more in the long run.

Monty Panesar was full of praise for fellow bowlers Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann after Andrew Strauss’s rejuvenated side reduced Pakistan to 256-7 in Abu Dhabi.

Broad and Swann finished day one of the second Test with three wickets each after commanding performances with the ball and Panesar, playing his first test since 2009, more than justified his selection by picking up opener Mohammad Hafeez’s.

Broad, (3-47) had Pakistan wobbling just after lunch when he bowled Younus Khan and Azhar Ali in quick succession to leave the host’s 103-4.

Pakistan briefly rallied through in-form skipper Misbah-ul-Haq (83 not-out) and Asad Shafiq’s stand of 100 before Swann (3-52) removed Shafiq LBW.

Broad and Swann then claimed the wickets of Adnan Akmal and Abdur Rehman before close to leave Panesar salivating over England’s deadly-duo.

Swanny’s got a prolific record against left-handers, and that last wicket [Abdur Rehman] was a great one,” he told the BBC.

“Swanny bowled really well with the second new ball and Jimmy [Anderson] and Stuart Broad upped the ante. We’d have taken that – seven down at end of the day.”

“The whole bowling unit did a fantastic job. From my end there was a bit of turn and we had the right-handed batsmen in play, so the ball turning away helped.

“There was a bit of nerves flying around, but I was really pleased to be back. Hafeez was a nice wicket to get after I dropped him the ball before.”

England cricket fans are used to watching their team be outdone by spin. Warne, Muralitharan, Kumble, Mushtaq have all done it. And now there is a new spinning nemesis, Saeed Ajmal.

The spinner took 10 wickets in the match as England made the worst imaginable start to the Pakistan series, slumping to a 10-wicket defeat inside three days.

Having taken the cricket world by storm to reach the top of the rankings in the five-day format, they capitulated in their first real challenge since reaching the world’s summit.

England have never won an away Test with Pakistan when they have won the toss and the bad run continued on the first morning. Andrew Strauss guessed correctly and elected to bat in Dubai.

From then on England were under pressure as wickets tumbled, most of them at the hand of Pakistan’s off spinner Ajmal.

The pitch was by no means a dust-bowl and the ball did not turn dramatically on any of the three days of play. Yet Ajmal, one of the finest exponents of off spin in the world game, took seven wickets in the first innings and completely bamboozled the English.

There was talk before the Test that Ajmal had created a new, “mystery delivery” named the teasra. When it was finally put on display commentators, including Michael Vaughan panned it as an unthreatening delivery.

That is all well and good, but if the batsman can’t pick the off spinner or the doosra then it renders the teasra irrelevant anyway.

The destruction Ajmal left in the first innings meant England, whose bowlers performed admirably to bowl the hosts out for 338 on a good batting pitch, were extremely guarded against him in the second.

The result was some extremely questionable shots from the top order as they looked to contain Ajmal and attack the remainder of the attack.

Strauss was unlucky to be caught down the leg side when the Decision Review System seemed to indicate he hadn’t hit it. Alastair Cook was dismissed down the leg side too, but will feel less hard done by than his skipper.

Usually such a composed player of the short ball, Cook seemed to flinch when Umar Gul banged one in. Undecided in whether to attack or evade, Cook threw his hands at the ball and only succeeded in gloving the ball behind.

Kevin Pietersen was then out-foxed within eight balls. It is well known that Pietersen likes to get off the mark early, usually dropping the ball into the off side and setting off for a frantic quick single. However, Pakistan countered this and blocked off his preferred route.

When a short ball presented itself just eight balls into his innings, Pietersen decided to try and hook it out of the ground, but was caught in the deep. It was a brainless shot that was not needed given the match situation.

Jonathan Trott seemed to be in one of his batting moods, compiling 49 runs from 111 balls and playing beautifully in the process. However, he slashed a cut shot at a short and wide delivery from Gul, who finished the second innings with 4-63, and was caught behind. In any other circumstance Trott’s usually reserved approach would have left the ball alone. The shot highlighted England’s desperation to score off the other bowlers with Ajmal proving so dangerous at the other end.

England slumped to 87-7 in the second innings, to follow their collapse to 97-7 in the first. Cook, Pietersen and Bell combined for 14 runs in the entire match, something that will need to drastically improve if they are to overturn this start.

They managed to make Pakistan bat again thanks to the swinging willow of Graeme Swann, but only set Pakistan a measly 15 runs.

The tourists must come up with a plan to play Ajmal, which includes scoring, and the other bowlers if they are to retrieve the situation they find themselves in at the moment. If they don’t their stay at the top of world Test cricket will be short lived.