Indian Bowling Coach Morne Morkel Discusses Jasprit Bumrah’s Performance
Following a mixed bag day at work during the third day of the fourth Manchester Test against England, Indian bowling coach Morne Morkel spoke on pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah’s lack of success with the new ball during this series. Morkel pointed out the lack of support from other bowlers and the failure to create pressure on batters from both ends. During the course of the series, Bumrah has taken a total of 13 wickets at an average of 26.69, with two five-wicket hauls. However, except for him removing openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett within the first 30 overs, he has had very little success with the newer or slightly used ball, with the majority of wickets coming when the ball is very old.
Challenges Faced by Bumrah
Morkel mentioned that for Bumrah to be more successful, bowlers need to partner with him effectively. However, he expressed concern that other bowlers are trying too hard to take wickets which leads to leaking runs and releasing pressure off Bumrah. Despite this, Morkel acknowledged Bumrah’s number one world ranking and his skillfulness.
Ignoring Kuldeep Yadav for Washington Sundar
When questioned about spinner Kuldeep Yadav being overlooked in favor of all-rounder Washington Sundar, Morkel explained that the team is attempting to find a way to include Kuldeep in the lineup. However, due to past experiences of losing wickets in clusters, the team needs a longer batting line-up, which affects the balance.
Test Series Challenges
Morkel admitted that the ongoing Test series poses a real test for the team’s bowling depth without the support of Mohammed Shami and with newer talents like Prasidh Krishna, Anshul Kamboj, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Akash Deep. He emphasized the importance of conditioning and building a core group of bowlers to handle five-match Test series effectively.
Match Highlights
England began strongly with Ollie Pope and Joe Root building a century partnership. Root’s exceptional performance led England to a commanding position at 544/7 at the end of the day, leading by 186 runs. Earlier, India made 358 runs with contributions from Sai Sudharsan, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Rishabh Pant, while England’s Stokes took five crucial wickets.
Final Thoughts
The challenging Test series is testing India’s bowling resources and providing valuable experience to newer players. The team faces the task of balancing recovery time from the IPL and preparing for five-match Test series effectively.
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