He first came to national prominence during the early days of Gen Zia's martial law, serving as Punjab province's finance and then chief minister from 1985-1990.
Gen Musharraf's decision to attend echoes the "cricket diplomacy" of former Pakistani leader Gen Zia-ul Haq, who watched a match in Jaipur in 1987 during a time of strained bilateral relations.
Mr Azam lived as an exile in Pakistan and the UK but returned to Bangladesh in 1978 when the country was led by Gen Ziaur Rahman - the assassinated husband of the country's current opposition leader Khaleda Zia.