Team India bowling coach Morne Morkel has asked Indian batters to give themselves an extra 5-10 balls to get used to the Lord’s pitch ahead of the ODI series decider against England. However, India faced a defeat in the second ODI, losing by four wickets. Morkel also added that the team looked set to reach the 280-300 mark at one point, assuring that the intent is always to “push that 10%” and get better as well. He also commented on Rohit Sharma’s batting form and the talk about his retirement.
“Like I said earlier, it is hard work with a new ball up front,” Morkel said. “We have seen that in the entire series. The ball is moving around. So batting up front, it is not easy. No doubt Rohit will work it out. He has done it in the past. He is experienced. And he just brings that calmness to the batting line-up. So without a doubt, no worries and concerns at all with the way he is going about things,” he said.
However, the slope at Lord’s creates issues for the batters. Morkel, who played at the venue on three separate Test tours, said that batters need time to settle there, calling it a “tricky” surface of late as well. He also commented on the bowling department as well.
“If you look at our top, top middle-order, they have played a lot of cricket are very experienced. They are very well aware of some of the conditions and how to form partnerships and that is going to be the key,” he said. “I am pretty sure Gautam (Gambhir) will have a look at the surface, and they probably will announce 12 or 13 guys and then tomorrow make the final call in terms of what we see then.”
“I would like to think that living in South Africa and playing 20 years of cricket in South Africa, that my experience counts for something. For us, at the moment it is about playing the best brand of cricket we can. There definitely conversations about the World Cup and planning that potentially we can take forward once we reach there or getting closer to the World Cup time. But for sure, I have learned my trade in South Africa. I understand the surfaces. I understand that the wickets can play differently at certain times of the year. Yeah, definitely I will put that forward to the team and to the table. From there, we just have to play our best cricket when it comes to the World Cup time,” Morne Morkel concluded.
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