England will need to score 145 runs to win the first of three Twenty20 matches against Pakistan after an impressive innings on the field.
England captain Stuart Broad chose to bowl in the first innings after winning the toss in Dubai.
The visitors, who thrashed Pakistan 4-0 in the one-day series, started off firing and managed to claim their first wicket in just under three overs. Junaid Zia was caught by the captain after a short ball from Steve Finn.
Broad was instrumental in claiming the next two wickets in quick succession by running out Asad Shafiq and forcing a catch by Jonathan Bairstow from Hafeez two balls later.
England continued their dominance as wickets began to tumble with Shahid Afridi and Umar Akmal suffering at the hand of the visitors with just under half of the overs left in the first innings.
While Pakistan managed to withstand England's bowlers for some time, Jade Dernbach managed to snatch a sixth wicket in the final over.
