When it came to selecting his support staff, India’s new head coach, Gautam Gambhir, picked those with whom he’d worked closely. While many had great resumes, Gambhir decided he wanted Abhishek Nayar, Ryan ten Doeschate, and Morne Morkel as the assistant and bowling coaches. You’d assume some bias was creeping in, as Gambhir has worked with all three in the last two years as an IPL mentor for the Kolkata Knight Riders and Lucknow Super Giants. Well, that’s certainly not the case for Morkel.
Gambhir wanted Morkel
The former South African quick wasn’t the only one in line for the position of India’s new bowling coach. According to PTI, former Indian cricketers like Lakshmipathy Balaji and Vinay Kumar were both interested in replacing Paras Mhambrey, but Morkel was the BCCI’s final pick. While Gambhir played a major role in this, it was the pacer’s prowess in Australia that helped him ultimately seal the deal.
“The Cricket Advisory Committee’s (CAC) mandate was to interview the candidates for the head coach. When it came to the choice of support staff, it was imperative that Gambhir’s choice prevailed. He has worked with Morne (Morkel) and thinks of him highly as a bowling coach,” a BCCI source told PTI.
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Morne Morkel’s success in Australia & England
Morkel may start his tenure as India’s bowling coach against Bangladesh in September, but that wasn’t why he was selected. While Balaji and Vinay Kumar are big names, neither has a resume like the South African fast bowler. Barring the UAE and Bangladesh, where he played 8 of the 86 Test matches, he’s got a good record everywhere.
A major emphasis behind his selection was based on his success in Australia in Test cricket. Given that India will go Down Under in November for a 5-match Test series, Morkel’s prowess in the bouncy conditions of Australia piped him over the other two names. He’s not just great there; he has a respectable record in England as well, where India is scheduled to play a 5-match Test series and potentially the World Test Championship Final in 2025.
“Also with the big series against Australia coming up Down Under from last week of November, there isn’t a better choice than the South African, who has himself enjoyed fair bit of success over there. Also there will be the five-Test tour of England next year with a potential sixth match if India reach WTC final,” the source added.
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