Unlike one of his captaincy counterparts in the Twenty20 format, Pakistan’s Test captain Misbah-ul-Haq is a measured man. He is not known for his impulsive proclamations or epic grandstanding. He thinks before he speaks and it is usually after much deliberation.

So, what he said after an emotional Pakistan defeated England in the fourth Test on Sunday carried resonance. By virtue of that victory, Pakistan drew the series 2-2. Should other results go their way, they will jump to No. 1 in the official Test rankings of the International Cricket Council. And while the way the rankings in cricket are stipulated can sometimes be bereft of logic, the Pakistani captain indicated that if his team did reach the summit, it would be a well-deserved achievement.

“This team deserves that for six years of not playing any games at home,” said Misbah. “Sometimes people think it’s really easy for us playing in the UAE. They think the wickets suit us and we win there. But just living every day away from your country, without your family and friends, and playing every game away from Pakistan, is really difficult. It’s mentally tough.”

Impassioned and emotional

If this sounded a little out of character from Misbah, it is because he is not known to be an emotional man. But this time, he did bare his soul, and that too, to make a distinct point – what Pakistan have already achieved and could well achieve, is momentous and should be celebrated as such.

Across the border, India also have their eyes on the No. 1 spot. For them, the task is much easier. Having already defeated West Indies in two out of three Tests on their tour of the Caribbean, Virat Kohli’s men will need to win the last Test at Trinidad to pip Pakistan to the summit.

But if the cricketing gods believed in a perfect world, they would undoubtedly ensure it is Pakistan who are given the rub of the green this time.

Make no mistake, Kohli’s men have improved by leaps and bounds. At one stage, not too long back in 2012, they did the unthinkable – lost a home Test series to England. But since Kohli took over the captaincy, they have not taken a backward step. What could have been a disaster in Sri Lanka after they collapsed and lost the first Test on the tour there was quickly transformed into a defining series victory. South Africa were bamboozled and befuddled when they toured India in late 2015, while the West Indies, apart from stray periods of defiance, have been comprehensively outclassed by India.

Home away from home

But it falls short when compared to Pakistan’s travails. As Misbah was undoubtedly trying to point out, the fact that this team do not play in Pakistan and have to play in the United Arab Emirates is often taken for granted. While Pakistan may have more familiarity with the surfaces in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the fact, which bears repeating again and again, is that those two surfaces are not in Pakistan. For all their facilities, Misbah-ul-Haq has not played a Test match in his home country since 2009.

“I can only see my mother once a year. I only see my sister once a year,” said an impassioned Misbah. “Some of my friends, I could not see for three or four years because of these commitments. We are out of the country all the time.”

And despite this, they continue to win in the UAE. They are yet to lose a series in the UAE since it became their temporary home in 2010. South Africa, England, Australia, New Zealand (India have been a notable exception), have all tried but failed to breach this fortress.

Fabulous recovery

Of course, critics carped about their away record. And in answer, now, Pakistan have this fantastic England tour to show them.

And it is fantastic. Since 2006, only two teams had earlier won more than a single Test in a series played in England: South Africa (twice) and Australia (once). Pakistan have joined elite company and they have done so in a manner that has charmed hearts and minds.

The first Test at Lord’s was impressively won, but then they were put severely under the cosh. They were hammered by 330 runs in the second Test at Manchester and it increasingly seemed that Lord’s was just a blip in the radar. Then, there was Pakistan’s typically mercurial nature on show at Birmingham in the third Test. They gained a substantial first-innings lead of over 100 runs, but then allowed England to claw back into the match. England did so resoundingly, batting with urgency in their second innings and then dismissing Pakistan for just 201 to go 2-1 up.

But for Pakistan to fight back from a 1-2 deficit against England at their home is a mightily brilliant achievement and one that few expected, especially after Misbah's men had allowed the hosts to escape from a precarious 110/5 to a healthy 328 all out in their first innings in the fourth Test. Younis Khan was at his sublime best to give Pakistan a massive lead, but one expected England to pull off another second-innings comeback and go on to secure the draw, which would give them another home series victory.

Not so, this time. Pakistan’s bowlers showed that they had learnt very quickly from the mistakes of the last Test and never took their eyes off the radar. The Three Lions were bowled out and Pakistan, on their Independence Day, had just come away from England drawing a series they were expected to comprehensively lose.

And so, Misbah is right. Pakistan deserve the No. 1 ranking. It would be the perfect indictment of the struggles and the barriers they have had to overcome to get this far. Kohli may well mastermind another demolition of the hapless West Indians over the next week but, perhaps, somewhere deep inside him, he too may agree.