Morne Morkel underlines his objective as India bowling coach as he joins the team in Chennai ahead of the Bangladesh series.
Morne Morkel as India’s bowling coach aims to protect an already well-oiled set-up. He will also make sure the players “feel at home” despite the weight of expectations.
The team is now practicing in Chennai in anticipation of the forthcoming home Test series against Bangladesh. Morkel joined the team there last month, taking over for Paras Mhambrey in the role.
“Coming here, this is a set-up that operates by itself,” Morkel said on bcci.tv. “To protect that and make it better in small ways is going to be the goal.
“When I was sitting in the plane, I reflected that we are so lucky to have quality senior players and they will lead the charge. Our responsibility is to support them and give them the best sort of advice that we can give.
Gautam Gambhir, the head coach, suggested Morkel. During the 2022 and 2023 Indian Premier League, the two have collaborated with the Lucknow Super Giants. To get the most out of the players, Morkel said it was critical for him to establish a rapport with them and give them a sense of security.
“I have played a lot against some of the players, I have seen and connected a little bit with some of the guys during the IPL,” he said. “To be now in the camp and form friendships and relationships is very important.
“Today’s goal was to get an understanding of the guys, their strengths and weaknesses, and help them with planting those seeds for goals for the upcoming series. That’s the sort of conversation we were having today. And the guys did really well. I was blown away by how they went about things, how professional they were. So that’s a good sign and, hopefully, we can build on that.”
Additionally talking about his appointment, Morkel said his dad was the first person he shared the news with.
“It [the appointment] was quite a special moment for me. I enjoyed it for about five to seven minutes with myself and then obviously shared it with the family. The first thing did was to phone my dad first. I spoke to him about it. I didn’t go to my wife. Normally, they say go to your wife first. But I spoke to my dad.”