"You know he'll work it out" - Morne Morkel backs Indian bowler despite his listless display on Day 2 of 3rd BGT 2024-25 Test
Team India's bowling coach Morne Morkel threw his weight behind left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja after the bowler failed to make an impact on Day 2 of The Gabba Test against Australia in Brisbane on Sunday, December 15. Terming Jadeja as a world-class player, he asserted that the seasoned cricketer knows how to get his act back on track.
India made a big decision to drop off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin for the third Test in Brisbane and bring Jadeja into the playing XI. The latter has bowled 16 overs so far in Australia's first innings and has registered figures of 0-76. The Aussies recovered from a poor start to reach 405-7 by stumps on Day 2.
Speaking after the end of the day's play, Morkel backed Jadeja and stated that the left-arm spinner has not played a lot of games recently.
“Jaddu, coming into this match didn't haven't had a lot of game time, but he's also a guy who has taken a lot of Test wickets. He's a very experienced player and we just felt we wanted to bring in the left-arm option as something different, you know, sitting with Rohit," the bowling coach commented.
“Jaddu is a guy that can also offer us a lot with the bat, unfortunately, today if you know it wasn't his day as a spinner. But, yeah, Jaddu for me is a world-class player and you know he'll work it out,” Morkel added about the all-rounder.
While Jadeja went wicketless in his 16 overs, pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah was outstanding yet again as he registered figures of 5-72 from 25 overs.
"Feel like it's a bit of a new ball surface" - Morne Morkel
Indian captain Rohit Sharma's decision to bowl first after winning the toss in Brisbane has been questioned by a number of critics. However, bowling coach Morkel defended the move and claimed that they would have been in a good position had they claimed a couple of more wickets. The 40-year-old said:
“I just thought, looking at the surface, if we can get the ball in the right area we can take wickets. I thought controlling the run-rate for a big part of the game and staying patient was key and if we could have added one or two wickets, winning the toss and bowling first would have worked.
“But unfortunately we are on the other side of it and we just need to take the positives out of it. So, when we do get that opportunity tomorrow it's about getting through the new ball because I honestly feel like it's a bit of a new ball surface. For us it's important now to put today aside and get our minds switched on and stay strong for a big batting innings,” he added.
Australia were 75-3 in the 34th over on Day 2 of the Brisbane Test. However, Travis Head (152) and Steve Smith (101) featured in a 241-run stand for the fourth wicket to lift the hosts to a commanding position.