Shaheen Afridi and Hasan Ali tore through Zimbabwe as Pakistan dominated day one of the Test series at the Harare Sports Club.
Zimbabwe were bowled out for only 176 after Brendan Taylor, captain in the absence of the injured Sean Williams, won the toss and opted to bat first.
Afridi and Ali took four wickets apiece as tourists as Zimbabwe were skittled out before tea and Pakistan looked set for a substantial lead after closing on 103 without loss.
Roy Kaia, one of three Zimbabwe debutants, top scored with 48 but it was all about Pakistan's new-ball duo at the start of the two-match series.
Afridi (4-43) claimed his 50th Test scalp in only his 16th match, the same number as it took the great Wasim Akram to reach that landmark, and Ali (4-53) was also outstanding.
They bowled with great skill and discipline along with Nauman Ali (1-29), reducing the hosts to 30-4 before fellow debutant Milton Shumba provided some support for Kaia in a fifth-wicket stand of 59.
Donald Tiripano made an unbeaten 28 but Zimbabwe's shortcomings with the bat were exposed as Pakistan look to end a run of 11 games without a victory away from home in the longest format.
An unbroken opening stand from Abid Ali (56) and Imran Butt (43) put Pakistan in an ominous position at stumps.
Afridi emulates Akram
At just 21-year-old, Afridi has raced to half a century of Test wickets at the same age and in as many matches as Pakistan legend Akram.
Afridi and Ali played a big hand in a Test series win over South Africa and they did damage with the red ball once again as Zimbabwe bid to secure a first Test away win for almost three years - the previous success coming against England at Lord's.
Kevin Kasuza dragged on an Ali delivery before Zimbabwe had a run on the board and they were 30-4 when Taylor fell to the same bowler for only five.
They showed some fight after lunch, but lost their last five wickets for 52 runs, with Afridi cleaning up Tendai Chisoro for his 50th scalp before bowling Blessing Muzarabani and Richard Ngarava.
Kaia a plus, umpire Rusere makes history
One positive for Zimbabwe was an encouraging knock from Kaia, who showed some resistance after coming in at number six in the opening session.
He struck seven boundaries in almost two hours at the crease, just missing out on a half-century on debut when was snared leg before by the excellent Ali.
One Zimbabwean who will have fond memories of the day is umpire Langton Rusere, who became the first Black African to stand in a Test match.
Ireland shock Pakistan in T20I opener
Ireland shocked Pakistan with a five-wicket victory in the first T20I at Clontarf, with Andrew Balbirnie starring for the hosts.
Balbirnie plundered 77 from 55 balls, including 10 fours and two sixes, and his partnership of 76 with Harry Tector (36) edged Ireland closer to victory.
Curtis Campher (15*) and Gareth Delany (10*) saw them over the line to secure the win with one ball to spare.
Despite an early setback, Pakistan started strong, with Babar Azam hitting 57 and Saim Ayub adding 45.
However, Craig Young’s strong performance saw him take 2-27 as Ireland took control to limit the visitors in the later stages as Azam Khan and Shadab Khan both walked without getting any runs.
The sides will meet again at the Dublin venue on Sunday and Tuesday.
Data Debrief:
Ireland achieved their target of 183 against Pakistan successfully today, making it their highest run chase against a full-member side in men's T20Is.
Ireland's first win against Pakistan came at the 2007 World Cup and 17 years later they secured a first victory over them in T20 cricket.
IPL: Titans broke records to move off the foot of the table
Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill wrote their names into the history books as the Gujarat Titans earned a 35-run victory over Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League on Friday to move eighth.
The pair contributed to a sensational 210 runs between them for the opening wicket – the joint-highest opening stand in IPL history – as the Titans set CSK a daunting target of 232.
Gill was the first to reach his century in the 17th over, plundering 104 off 55 balls, but Sudharsan followed shortly after, hitting 103 off 51 before Tushar Deshpande got both out within the next five balls.
The Titans only added a further 41 runs to finish with 231-3 but stifled CSK when they stepped up to bat.
The Super Kings were 10 for three down inside the first two overs before Daryl Mitchell (63) and Moeen Ali (56) got them into their stride.
Mohit Sharma ensured the Titans ended strongly, finishing with figures of 3-31 to limit CSK to 196-8, leaving them with a tough task to reach the play-offs as they remain in fourth.
Data Debrief: GT history makers
Sudharsan, whose knock included five fours and seven maximums, and Gill, who helped himself to nine fours and six maximums, both scored their first centuries in the IPL this season.
Along the way, Gill and Sudharsan pushed the IPL century count past 100.
IPL: Kohli shines as RCB maintain winning run against Kings
Virat Kohli's superb knock of 92 helped Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a fourth straight win in the Indian Premier League on Thursday as they kept their playoff hopes alive with a 60-run triumph over Punjab Kings.
Kohli smashed seven fours and six sixes in his 47 balls faced as the Challengers set the Kings a daunting target of 241, with Rajat Patidar also bringing up his half-century and Cameron Green (46 off 27) falling just short of doing so.
The Kings pulled off the biggest run chase in IPL history less than two weeks ago, but their hopes of another comeback were dealt a huge blow when Faf du Plessis took a wonderful over-the-shoulder catch to send Jonny Bairstow packing with Punjab at 71-1.
Kohli's contribution wasn't only limited to the bat, as he produced a stunning run out of Shashank Singh, haring onto the scene to send wickets flying with an underarm throw as Shashank failed to make it back by mere inches.
It was then up to Mohammed Siraj to polish off the Punjab tail, finishing with figures of 3-43 as the Kings fell to back-to-back defeats, keeping them ninth in the standings.
Data Debrief: Kohli leads the way
Having previously claimed the honour in 2016, Kohli leads the way in the race for the 2024 Orange Cap, another impressive innings taking him to 634 runs for the campaign.
Averaging 70.44 with a strike rate of 153.51, Kohli put further distance between himself and Chennai Super Kings' Ruturaj Gaikwad, whose 541 runs put him second in the standings.
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