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England achieved their highest one-day total on foreign soil as they won the opening match of the one-day series against Pakistan by 42 runs.
Andrew Strauss anchored the innings with 96 and Kevin Pietersen (59) and Andrew Flintoff (72 not out) produced the big-hitting to carry them to 327-4.
Salman Butt, Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf and Shoaib Malik all made half centuries in reply.
But Pakistan were all out for 285 as super-sub Liam Plunkett claimed 3-51.
The result ended a seven-match winning streak for Pakistan - four against India and three in the West Indies - and gave England a much-needed lift after being beaten 2-0 in the Test series.
Their performance in the field perhaps owed more to perspiration than inspiration, with a weary-looking Flintoff conceding 41 from his opening four overs.
But he took the catch to dismiss Butt off Steve Harmison to end a second wicket stand of 117 and then claimed the vital wicket of Younis.
Spinner Ian Blackwell played a crucial role as he managed to avoid conceding a single boundary in his 10 overs, and one-day debutant Plunkett made his mark in the closing stages by accounting for Yousuf and Abdul Razzaq.
England skipper Marcus Trescothick had no hesitation in batting first after winning the toss earlier in the day, but it was new opening partner Matt Prior who provided the early impetus with 45.
5Prior, who won selection with his 72 in the warm-up game against Pakistan A, opened his account with four off Sussex team-mate Rana Naved.
And he added another when he picked a back of the hand slower ball and carved it away through the covers for four.
Strauss came in following Trescothick's dismissal for 13 with question marks against him, having made only 44 runs in four innings during the Test series.
But successive boundaries off Naved calmed any nerves as he and Prior added 51 before Prior appeared to lose the flight of a full toss from paceman Mohammad Sami and was lbw.
Pietersen was given the benefit of the doubt when struck on the pad by Razzaq and did not waste the reprieve as he deposited leg-spinner Danish Kaneria for six over mid-wicket and backward square leg off successive balls.
His half century came up off 35 balls and he looked hungry for more when he was well stumped by Kamran Akmal off a leg-side wide from Malik.
Flintoff bided his time at the start of the innings, content to let Strauss close in on what would have been a third one-day century.
But the Middlesex left-hander's hopes were dashed when he hit a long hop from Kaneria straight to Salman Butt, leaving England 237-4 after 39 overs.
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