Azhar was named Test captain this month in place of Sarfaraz Ahmed whose spot as wicketkeeper has been taken by Mohammad Rizwan.
Hasan Ali and Yasir Shah claimed five wickets each against New Zealand to put Pakistan on the brink of victory on day three of the first Test in Abu Dhabi on Sunday.
A defeat against India inevitably gives rise to conspiracy theories and the post match media interaction was no different.
Pakistan survived a top-order collapse before completing a seven-wicket win over United Arab Emirates in their second round robin league match of the Asia Cup T20 tournament on Monday.
No major cricketing nation has toured Pakistan since the terrorist attack on Sri Lanka team back in 2009.
India have managed to retain their third spot among T20 teams while Virat Kohli has held on to his sixth spot in the ICC rankings for Twenty20 batsmen issued in Dubai on Sunday.
One of the finest fast bowlers in current times, Mohammed Amir would be pitted against the talismanic Virat Kohli in what could turn out to be a battle primarily between India's vaunted batting line-up and against Pakistan's potent bowling attack.
The road to the knockout stage for Sarfaraz Ahmed and his men is just an improbable mathematical calculation and that too provided Pakistan win the toss and bat first.
World cricket's most intriguing rivalry will once again be renewed when India take on an unpredictable Pakistan with rehabilitated pacer Mohammad Aamir being the focus of attention in a round-robin league encounter of the Asia Cup T20 tournament, in Mirpur, on Saturday.
A clinical all-round display by the Northern Districts helped them crush Lahore Lions by a whopping 72 runs to all but ensure their entry into the main round of the Champions League T20 in Raipur.
'They (Pakistan team) are perhaps better off coming to England as opposed to staying in Pakistan because it is even worse there. Once they get to England, they will be in a bio-secure area'.
Kumble felt the ICC's proactive approach helped bring down the number of bowlers with suspect action in the last two years.
Riding high on a comfortable win over Dolphins in their last encounter, Chennai Super Kings will look to keep the momentum going when they lock horns with Lahore Lions in the Champions League T20.
The most sought-after megastars of the current generation are primed to show their might against a bunch of enigmatic cricketers as India and Pakistan engage in an ICC T20 World Cup face-off, something that transcends the 22-yard strip.
Images from the T20 World Cup Super 12 Group 2 match between India and Pakistan, in Dubai, on Sunday.
Some in the Pakistan media questioned whether Sarfaraz got the support he needed from his senior players.
Who do you think should be part of India's playing XI for Sunday's T20 World Cup game against Pakistan?
Pakistan will not only have to win the remaining three matches, starting with New Zealand, but also hope that the results in other matches favour them to salvage any hopes of a semi-final berth.
With both teams virtually out of the semi-final race, South Africa and Pakistan will be battling it out for a consolation win in their World Cup match at Lord's.
Pakistan's batting finally came good as they successfully chased down a competitive total posted by Sri Lanka to win by six wickets in an inconsequential final round robin league encounter of the Asia Cup Twenty20 cricket tournament in Mirpur on Friday. Batting first, Sri Lanka could manage a decent 150 for four, riding on a century opening stand between TM Dilshan and Dinesh Chandimal. In reply, Pakistan produced a collective batting performance to win the match in 19.2 overs. Umar Akmal (48 off 37 balls) and veteran Shoaib Malik (13 not out) added 56 runs in 6.1 overs to take Pakistan home. Akmal's innings had four boundaries and two huge sixes. Mohammed Hafeez (14) hit three boundaries before off-spinner Shehan Jayasuriya dismissed him off a delivery that stopped as the batsman failed to check his shot. Left-hander Sharjeel Khan hit five boundaries and a six, in his 31 off 25 balls as he added 35 quick runs for the second wicket with Sarfraz Ahmed (38).
The Asia Cup to be played in Bangladesh from February 24, will be played in the T20 format for the first time in the tournament's history. The tournament which precedes the vital World T20 to be held in in India in March, has a rich history with India and Sri Lanka winning it five times each. Pakistan have been victorious on two occasions while Bangladesh's best finish has been their runner-up performance in the 2012 edition. Team India will be led by MS Dhoni and the tournament will also see Virat Kohli returning after taking a break from the recently concluded three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka. Dhoni will be chasing history to become the most successful skipper in the tournament history. The Indian skipper and former Lankan captain Arjuna Ranatunga have both recorded same number of nine victories and four defeats in the Asia Cup All the matches will be played at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Mirpur. The qualifying rounds involving Afghanistan, United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong and Oman has begun from Friday.
Eight teams have formed some of the best combinations from a pool of 64 top cricketers in the players' draft for T10League -- the limited ten-over format cricket -- that will be played at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
Images from the World Cup match between New Zealand and Pakistan, at Birmingham, on Wednesday.
Rohit Sharma produced an elegant hundred before Kuldeep Yadav flummoxed the Pakistani batsmen as India inflicted a humiliating 89-run defeat via the Duckworth-Lewis method on their arch-rivals.
England have by far been the best team in the tournament.
Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq became the oldest player to score a Test century for 82 years, when he scored an unbeaten 110 runs against England at Lord's on Thursday. Pakistan were 282 for 6 at stumps on the opening day of the first Test in a four-match series.
Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Gautam Gambhir chose not to be harsh on his fielders, who missed chances galore in Sunday's Champions League Twenty20 contest against Lahore Lions, saying the team has worked hard in its impressive 11-match winning streak.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) crackdowns on chucking again. West Indies mystery spinner Sunil Narine has been reported for suspect bowling action during a Champions League T20 match between KKR and Dolphins, in Hyderabad.
Shikhar Dhawan scoring 12 runs from Pakistan's ace spinner Saeed Ajmal's first over was the turning point in India run-chase in the WT20 match in Mirpur on Friday. The bowler was immediately taken off and by the time he returned for another spell India were well on the way to victory.
Bangladesh defeated Pakistan by five wickets to qualify for the final of the Asia Cup.
It is time again to return to the shortest format of cricket as leading players, including India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, get ready to represent their respective franchises in the sixth edition of the Champions League T20.
Images from the ICC Champions Trophy match between England and Pakistan in Cardiff on Wednesday.
Both the teams lost their opening matches but bounced back into reckoning after producing two of the tournament's biggest upsets so far.
The World Twenty20 build-up has been far from ideal for Pakistan but captain Shahid Afridi said his team is in a positive frame of mind even though it needs to be more disciplined in executing strategy. Pakistan could win only two matches during last month's Asia Cup, a debacle that came close on the heels of a limited-overs away series loss to New Zealand. Afridi said his side has been guilty of deviating from plans and this shortcoming will have to be overcome when it takes on Bangladesh (March 16) and India (March 19) in the opening two matches here. "We are missing that (execution of plans). But I don't think we should live in the past. If we play to the team plan, we would do well," Afridi said in a press conference on Sunday. "The first game is always very important. You take rhythm from the first match. We will try to take the rhythm from the first match. The pitch and conditions suit us. Both the matches will be very important," he added.
Pakistan will meet Group A toppers England in the first semi-final on Wednesday at the same venue.
A rejuvenated Pakistan brought their campaign back on track as they rode on Umar Akmal's scintillating 54-ball 94 to register a 16-run victory over tournament favourites Australia in the ICC World T20 in Mirpur on Sunday.
Defending champions the West Indies trounced Pakistan by 84 runs on Tuesday to set up a semi-final meeting with Sri Lanka in the ICC World Twenty20. Led by a late charge from Dwayne Bravo (46) and skipper Darren Sammy (42 not out) the West Indies put up an impressive 166 for six after electing to bat and then shot out Pakistan for a meagre 85 in 17.5 overs.
The National Investigation Agency has arrested four terror associates during searches at 18 locations in Jammu and Kashmir following the registration of a case to unearth a conspiracy hatched by various terror groups to carry out attacks in the Union territory and other major cities, including New Delhi, an official said on Wednesday.
Half-centuries from Mohammed Rizwan and Babar Azam helped Pakistan outclass Namibia by 45 runs to storm into the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
Suryakumar Yadav has been reported for a suspect illegal bowling action, becoming the fifth bowler to be called in the just concluded Champions League Twenty20 tournament.
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