Not Ben Duckett! Morne Morkel Reveals ENG Batter Giving India 'Many Sleepless Nights'
India bowling coach Morne Morkel said Joe Root has given India 'many sleepless nights' in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy.
India's bowling coach Morne Morkel revealed that England star Joe Root has given him and his team 'many sleepless nights', expressing delight at his dismissal in the final hour of the fourth day of the intense fifth Test at The Oval.
India found renewed energy when Root, who had consistently troubled India during their defence of a 373-run target, lost his crucial wicket. Root, following his habit of dabbing the ball to the third man, edged it thickly to wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel behind the stumps.
Root returned with an impressive 105 (152), and Morkel's relief was evident. The former South African seamer, who had faced challenges while bowling to Root, shared his reaction upon seeing the dismissal.
'Oh, I was very happy, very happy. You know, Joe's given me many sleepless nights, or us sleepless nights, and obviously, again, just showed his class today. Yeah, so very happy when we got the back of him," Morkel told reporters at the end of the day's play.
In the final Test, India's strategy of using two spin bowling all-rounders, a specialist batter, and three pacers backfired and pushed them close to defeat. The Oval, known for offering minimal assistance to spinners, increased the workload on the three fast bowlers, necessitating captain Shubman Gill to frequently rotate Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj, and Prasidh Krishna.
Morkel explained the reasoning behind this setup in the decisive Test and mentioned that the management believed adding extra runs on the board was crucial. He also noted that after the series concludes, the management will review and identify areas for improvement.
'To be honest with you, that was part of the conversation before every selection so far, you know. We just felt leading into the test match, if you look at the wicket and sort of the overhead conditions for the first three days, they felt that going with the extra batter was going to be important," he said.
'I think in the last two test matches, our fourth seamer didn't really bowl that much because Washi and Jadeja also could hold up an end and bowl some overs. And, yeah, they just thought, OK, having that little extra runs on the board, that was more important. Yeah, 100 per cent. That's a good question, and I think that's something we'll obviously reflect on after the tour, the things we could have done better," he concluded.
The final day of the Test is finely balanced after rain caused an early closure on Sunday. England returned to the dressing room with 339/6 on the board, just 35 runs away from a 3-1 series win. Conversely, a determined bowling performance from India's quicks has left them needing four wickets to level the series.
(With ANI Inputs)
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