Willis hit three fours in his 24 from 37 balls to help England to 165/9, and his one wicket for 37 runs, along with Boycott's 2/14, helped England keep Pakistan from the target.

England's blood, sweat, toil and tears keep Pakistan in check 4.

Winning a contract in China, they argue, will never be as central to national security as keeping Pakistan and India from a nuclear war.

"One thing is very clear: The U.S. is keeping India and Pakistan at two different levels," said Hasan Askari Rizvi, an independent political analyst in Lahore.

The speeches made clear that despite surviving two assassination attempts last month, General Musharraf remained wedded in principle to a moderate, tolerant Islam and to keeping Pakistan in the international community's good graces.

But Pakistan keeps India from being great in the east, and India keeps Pakistan from being great in the west.

President Bush's party has a crucial election to win and Pervez Musharraf is keen to keep Pakistan in the limelight as long as possible.

India, better armed by virtually every measure, has kept Pakistan off balance since they were created from the partition of British India in 1947.

Administration officials also want to keep nuclear-armed Pakistan on their side to safeguard NATO supplies flowing on routes that cross Pakistan to Afghanistan.