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Pakistan will not take it easy says Waqar

Mohammad Hafeez, Misbah-ul-Haq and Taufeeq Umar celebrate a wicket AFP

Pakistan will not experiment much against Ireland in the second game of the two-ODI series on Monday in Belfast, coach Waqar Younis has said. Pakistan lead the series 1-0, after a clinical seven-wicket win over the hosts in the rain-affected encounter on Saturday.

"We are not going to throw all the youngsters in and say, 'because it is Ireland we can take it easy'," Waqar said. "This is international cricket and you do have to give your youngsters a chance. It doesn't matter if it is England or it is Ireland.

"But you have to bring on your young players when it is required. It's not that you throw them in because you are playing Ireland. We have to make sure we win and that we are playing good cricket. That's exactly what we are going to do."

Monday's match presents Ireland another chance to prove they can consistently compete against the big teams, with the ICC scheduled to decide on Associate participation in the 2015 World Cup next month. So, Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq expects a sterner test.

"We know they are going to give us a tough time," Misbah said. "They have been making it tough for other teams and even beating good teams. So it's a good competition, it is international-level competition."