India bowling coach Morne Morkel believes in having individual conversations with each member of the pace attack, given the variety of skills within the group. Morkel, a former South Africa fast-bowling great, joined the Indian team in 2024 and has become a key member of Gautam Gambhir’s support staff. “I try to keep it more individual-based. We will have a group sit-down in terms of what we potentially can expect. But all our guys have different skill sets. So, for me, it’s more about tapping into those guys individually during training and warm-ups, and then having a quick chat.”They are all skilful. They know their game, they know how to go about their business. It’s just about aligning all those small little things,” Morkel told the host broadcaster ahead of the second ODI against New Zealand.
Morkel said that with 12 international matches scheduled over a month, including 10 white-ball games and two Tests, careful planning was essential to maximise the effectiveness of India’s bowling resources.
“Our communication to this group has been clear for a long time. We obviously identified this as a big tour. We haven’t played our best white-ball cricket outside India, so we placed a big emphasis on coming on this tour and playing a good brand of cricket.”
“There’s a lot of planning that goes into these kinds of games. Then we have to assess and read the conditions,” he said.
Morkel also praised the bowlers for the way they adapted to conditions in Auckland, where the unique dimensions of Eden Park can often challenge visiting teams.
“The boys adapted well to the conditions. For me, it was about taking the dimensions out of the equation, and the guys executed the plans really well.”
“Here in New Zealand, sometimes the field placements will tell you what to bowl, but you still need to put the ball in the right areas,” Morkel added.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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