Morkel says India’s three-match ODI series vs West Indies in Thiruvananthapuram is a World Cup audition for bowlers
Morne Morkel said on Friday that India’s three-match ODI series against the West Indies, which begins in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday, will act as an audition for bowlers aiming for places in the 2027 World Cup plans and that second-line options will be given chances to prove themselves.
Speaking ahead of India’s training session, the former South Africa pacer stressed the need to give game time to players such as Prasidh Krishna and Gurnoor Brar and to expose them to match situations as part of building the bowling group for the World Cup. "I think if you look at the last year, we've been trying to give guys some game time and see in different roles how they react. It will be the same now leading into the series and looking at New Zealand," Morkel said.
Morkel said opportunities will be provided to see how bowlers perform in different roles and that the coaching staff wants them to embrace challenging moments rather than merely protect their places. "To give guys opportunity with ball in hand... I think it's very important for these guys (Prasidh, Brar) to get the game time, to get a feel of the standard that we're looking to play. So yeah, I think in this series there will definitely be opportunities given to guys to see what they can do in their different roles," he added.
He described a desire for bowlers to ask for the ball in tough spells and to try to break developing partnerships, tying that attitude to the team's development. "We've challenged the bowlers when conditions are tough or there's certain partnerships that are developing. I want to see guys asking for the ball and wanting to create those opportunities and not be sort of protecting their own space," the former South Africa pacer said.
Morkel linked confidence in pressure situations to long-term growth, saying the team wants players who seek difficult scenarios and can find solutions when in trouble. "I think that will be a great goal for us if we can develop that attitude where guys want tough situations. You know, if we are maybe 30 for 4, who's going to get that partnership and get us a hundred? "So if we can throw ourselves into certain situations and guys can figure out ways to play that situation there will be growth and that will help us down the line," he added.
On injured players, Morkel said team management is coordinating with the medical staff at the BCCI Centre of Excellence to map individual return-to-play plans, citing Harshit Rana among those on the sidelines. "We have got Harshit and all those guys who are still on the sidelines. We're excited to get them back and get them playing and get them fit again. So, that's part of our jobs to sit with the medical staff and map that out. "But there's definitely a plan for every individual. We'll keep on monitoring that and coming up with the best way forward to give the selectors a group to pick from," he said.
Acknowledging frustration at frontline bowlers repeatedly missing matches through injury, Morkel said depth offers opportunities for others to step up while expressing hope injuries will be resolved later in the year. "Yeah, I mean, it is (frustrating). Obviously, you want to have your strongest and condition-wise the best 11 on the field. But certainly it's part of the game that, you know, the guys getting injured at times where we didn't ideally want them to fall injured. "But, yeah, luckily, we've got a fantastic back-up in the wings. It's a great opportunity, again, for guys to, you know, to go and play a game for India, to make a name for themselves and to compete. "But, you know, really, hopefully, we can get all the injuries now out of the way. And later down the year, we'll be fine and we can take it on from there," he added.
Morkel said the West Indies series is the starting point for preparing the bowling group for the World Cup and urged players to begin raising standards immediately rather than waiting until shortly before the tournament. "For me, at the end of the day whoever walks onto the field now, up to the World Cup, starting on Sunday, needs to know that there is a certain standard we need to achieve. I want these players to put themselves under as much pressure," Morkel said. "I think the World Cup is the biggest stage. You can't decide a month or a week before the tournament now that we're going to step things up. I think it starts now with this series against the West Indies," he added.
