India and Pakistan have started their first cricket series in five years with a Twenty20 match amid tight security in the southern Indian city of Bangalore.

It is the first series between the South Asian rivals since the terrorist attacks in Mumbai in 2008 that killed 166 people. India blamed the attacks on insurgents based in Pakistan.

The two countries have in the past resorted to cricket diplomacy to improve relations.

Security was tight at the packed Chinnaswamy stadium on Tuesday, with police frisking spectators at the gates and at least 200 surveillance cameras monitoring activity in and around the ground, broadcaster NDTV reported.

At least 5000 police officers were deployed at the stadium and along the one-kilometre route to the hotel where the two teams were staying. Bomb squads and sniffer dogs had been in the area since Sunday, NDTV reported.

India and Pakistan last faced off in a two-team series in November 2007. They have competed against each other at overseas grounds in tournaments such as the Twenty20 Cricket World Cup in Sri Lanka in September.

An estimated 3000 Pakistani cricket fans were expected to arrive in India over the next two weeks to watch the three 50-over and two 20-over matches. The series was scheduled to end on January 6.

“This marks a new fresh journey of two great cricketing nations, and I hope there will be Test matches in the future,” Pakistani captain Mohammad Hafeez said in Bangalore.

Hafeez said expectations were always high when India and Pakistan played each other.

“We are here to enjoy ourselves with the great atmosphere India always has,” he said.

The two countries have fought three wars since their independence from British rule, two of them over the disputed Kashmir region.