London [UK], June 13 (ANI): India bowling coach Morne Morkel expects the wickets to be “less spicy” than the ones they have experienced in England and outlined one “crucial” aspect that a player must maintain to thrive in the testing tour.
Since landing in England, the Indian team has engaged in an intense practice session with a touch of banter between the players. Morkel, known for his past wizardry on English soil, has been closely observing the relentless battle between the bat and the ball along with the rest of the coaching staff.
After a couple of days into the practice session, Morkel identified that the surface suited the quicks, making it a laborious task for the batters to survive at the crease but beneficial in the long-term prospect.
“The two-day practice so far, conditions suited the fast bowlers. Early on in the tour is very exciting. You know, it gets their confidence going. It is testing to the batters, which also, in a way, helps them to prepare for what’s to come,” Morkel said in a video posted by the BCCI.
“I don’t think the wicket is going to be as spicy as the ones we experience here. There’s been a lot of good banter between the bat and the ball. But I think it’s only because the wickets are a little bit spicy,” he added.
As Morkel continues to foretell the way wickets would behave when an action-packed tour kicks off on June 20 at Headingley, he wants to convey one simple message to his pace squadron. The former lanky seamer doesn’t want the conversations between bowlers to be limited when the conditions are ideal for making the ball move according to their will. He wants them to extend those talks when wickets get flat because that’s when “character” is tested.
“As soon as the wickets go flat, the bowlers tend to back off. So I am gonna tell them to not to only talk when the wickets are nipping around. But when it’s flat, that’s where we are gonna need the character,” he said.
With the passage of every day, India gets closer to beginning a new era in Test cricket. India will line up without its batting bigwigs Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who bid adieu to the format last month.
Even with a squad that stands short on the experience front, Morkel outlined the importance of staying consistent on and off the field to reap success in England.
“It’s just slowly building towards that first Test match. For me, the main thing I think is crucial in England is consistency. There is consistency when we practice. It’s consistency off the field. You know, finding your process what’s going to work for you as an individual. We have got a great variation variety in our attack of guys with different skill sets,” he said.
“We are all happy with the start so far. I was a little nervous in terms of the lack of red ball (matches) we have played, but seeing how the guys are moving around and training in the last three days, it is a pleasing sight. We have a fantastic group at the moment. There is some quality in this group. You need to get into a Test series confidently. You need to have that team spirit in the group, and I think so far they have done a great job,” he concluded.
India’s squad: Shubman Gill (C), Rishabh Pant (VC & WK), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav. (ANI)
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