Pakistan head across the Irish Sea for two One-Day Internationals in preparation for their Royal London ODI Series against England which gets underway at The Ageas Bowl next Wednesday.
After a mixed Test series which saw them draw 2-2 with England, Misbah-ul-Haq has handed over control of the Pakistan team to 50-over captain Azhar Ali, who leads a fairly inexperienced squad in the white-ball format.
Veteran batsmen Misbah and Younus Khan have retired from ODI cricket but the experienced Shoaib Malik returns to the fold, alongside 32-year-old paceman Umar Gul. They will shoulder a lot of the responsibility in the side, with the likes of Sami Aslam and Hasan Ali offering youthful exuberance.
Pakistan face an ever-improving Ireland side in Dublin and will be hoping for a winning start to their 50-over campaign after a string of disappointing results in the format. They have slipped to ninth in the ICC ODI Rankings, while Eoin Morgan's England have risen to fifth after their recent exhilirating displays.
Pakistan's ODI versus Ireland gets underway at Dublin on Thursday.