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Pakistan stand-in skipper Shoaib Malik says Australia will always be one of the strongest teams at any World Cup.

Even before Australia upstaged India in unprecedented fashion, Pakistan stand-in skipper Shoaib Malik regarded them as one of the biggest threats at the World Cup.

Aaron Finch's team were widely written off as World Cup contenders, having endured a terrible slump in which they recorded four victories from their past 26 completed ODIs.

That trot ended when Australia banked three constructive wins to complete a landmark series win in India.

It marked the first time Australia have ever fought back from 2-0 down to win a five-match ODI series and the first time India have ever lost a five-match ODI series after leading 2-0.

Australia start another five-match series, against Pakistan in Sharjah at 10pm AEDT on Friday, and Malik is in no doubt about the threat posed by the opposition.

"Even though Australia did not win any series until (India), I considered them one of the strongest teams at any big event," Malik told reporters.

Five months ago, Malik was part of the Pakistan outfit that crushed Australia 3-0 in a Twenty20 series in the UAE.

Australia's improvement in white-ball cricket since those defeats has been immense.

"When your two key players (Steve Smith and David Warner) are not in the side, any team can struggle," Malik said.

"I am sure they sat down and talked about everything.

"The series they played against India in India, it was a very big series for them. That series itself tells that things are much better in the dressing room ... their morale is high.

"If you look at what the Australian team was a couple of years ago, you could see the same aggression and the same amount of confidence."

Finch highlighted the even spread of contributors in India when asked about his team's turnaround.

"If you get an opportunity to win a game, make sure you're the guy who puts your hand up and does that. Don't leave it to other people," Finch said.

"That might have been something - we expected somebody else to do the job for us then."

Malik is leading Pakistan in the absence of Sarfraz Ahmed, who is one of six stars to have been rested from the series.

"I'm not one who looks for excuses. We have enough strength in our dressing room to take on Australia," he said.