Pakistan players landed in the UAE on Wednesday evening for a historic T20 series against Afghanistan.
The neighbours and arch rivals will face off in a three-match series which begins at Sharjah Cricket Stadium from Friday.
Afghanistan were due to start their season with an ODI series against Australia this month but Cricket Australia refused to play over political considerations. Pakistan then agreed to play a short series.
All-rounder Shadab Khan will lead a new-look Pakistan team in the absence of regular captain Babar Azam and several senior players.
Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Afridi have been rested by the Pakistan board in a bid to better manage their workloads following a frenetic finish to the Pakistan Super League won by Lahore Qalandars on Saturday.
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All-rounders Faheem Ashraf and Mohammad Nawaz with other Pakistan players after arriving in the UAE for the T20 series against Afghanistan. Photo: Afghanistan Cricket Board / Twitter -
Pakistan captain Shadab Khan after landing in the UAE for the Afghanistan T20 series. Photo: Afghanistan Cricket Board / Twitter -
Pakistan bowling coach Umar Gul. Photo: Pakistan Cricket / Twitter -
Pakistan seamer Mohammad Wasim after landing in the UAE. Photo: Pakistan Cricket / Twitter -
Pakistan captain Shadab Khan, fast bowler Zaman Khan and other Pakistan team members in the UAE. Photo: Pakistan Cricket / Twitter -
Shadab Khan will lead a new-look Pakistan team in Sharjah. Photo: Pakistan Cricket / Twitter -
Afghanistan contingent welcomes the Pakistan team. Photo: Afghanistan Cricket Board / Twitter
It means young players like Ihsanullah, Saim Ayub, and Zaman Khan will get a chance to shine at the international level after impressing in the PSL.
The series is expected to be action-packed. Both teams have faced off in multi-nation tournaments, with some matches witnessing serious crowd trouble and clashes between players in what has turned into a bitter rivalry.
This will be the first bilateral series between the teams. Both clashed in a one-off ODI and T20 match 10 years back.
The first T20 begins in Sharjah on Friday, with the second game on Sunday and the third on Monday. Ticket prices for the matches start at Dh45 and can be bought on platinumlist.net
