England’s cricket team arrived in Pakistan early Sunday to play three Tests for the first time in the country since 2005.

England played a successful Twenty20 series two months ago in Pakistan but have declined to play a Test match there for 17 years because of the precarious security situation.

They were due to visit Pakistan last year but pulled out after New Zealand abandoned their tour minutes before the first one-day international, citing security alerts. 

There were fears of a similar pull out earlier this month following an attack on former prime minister Imran Khan during a protest march in Wazirabad, a city in Punjab province.

The England captain's first steps on Pakistan soil.