Cricket comes home, as Pakistan all set to face World XI in first of three-match Twenty20 series at Gaddafi stadium Lahore.
The historic series will kick off from today with fans already started reaching the stadium amid tight security.
The World XI, led by South African skipper Faf du Plessis, reached Lahore on Monday morning, with West Indian spinner Samuel Badree joining the team earlier today and completing the stellar line-up of 14 players from seven Test-playing countries.
The historic series will be closely monitored by other cricket boards and Pakistan expects it will pave the way for the country to host Sri Lanka and West Indies later this year.
Back in March, the return of international cricket picked up steam after the final of the domestic T20 Pakistan Super League, featuring foreign players such as World Cup winner Darren Sammy, was held in Lahore.
Over 6,000 police officials and paramilitary officers have been deployed around the stadium, according to provincial government spokesman Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan.
"A foolproof security plan has been devised for the protection of the teams and spectators," he told Geo news said.
Long queues formed at vendors across the city and many fans were turned away as tickets sold out.
For Sarfraz Ahmed’s side, 10 players have the opportunity to represent their country for the first time on home turf. Mohammad Amir, Hasan Ali, Shadab Khan, Rumman Raees, Fakhar Zaman, Usman Khan Shinwari, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Aamer Yamin and Umar Amin will be playing for the first time on Pakistani soil.
Mohammad Amir, however, is expected to miss the first two matches of the series.
Squads
Pakistan: Sarfraz Ahmad (captain, wicketkeeper), Fakhar Zaman, Ahmed Shehzad, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Umar Amin, Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Aamer Yamin, Mohammad Amir, Rumman Raees, Usman Khan Shinwari and Sohail Khan.
World XI: Faf du Plessis (captain), David Miller, Morne Morkel, Tim Paine, Thisara Perera, Imran Tahir, Darren Sammy, Hashim Amla, Grant Elliott, Samuel Badree, George Bailey, Tamim Iqbal, Paul Collingwood and Ben Cutting.