India bowling coach Morne Morkel credited strong team discussions after the Leeds loss for the improved bowling display in Edgbaston, praising Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep for executing their plans with discipline.
00:00Mone, all the bowlers are doing really well, but can you talk about that Jorud delivery from Akash Teep?
00:07And the second part is there's a lot of chatter about that, you know, if Bhumra doesn't play, you know, this attack, can they be, you know, able to pick those 20 wickets?
00:16How impressed are you? I know that you have the belief that they can do it, but how impressed are you with all of them?
00:23No, very, very happy so far. You know, we had a deep or good discussion after the last test in terms of areas we want to improve on, and I think we've done that.
00:34So that's a pleasing sign from a growing bowling attack, you know, missing one of their most experienced players so they can react to those sort of things.
00:42And, you know, coming back to Akash, he is an attacking bowler that asks questions, you know, bowling at the stumps a lot.
00:49And I think that's one of the golden rules here in England, you know, is asking questions in the stumps.
00:54So for these sort of conditions in the UK, it suits his style, and, you know, coming back from injury and seeing him running in with a high pace, it's a nice sign for us.
01:06Oh, yeah, I mean, coming back to the ball, obviously that's a dream delivery.
01:10Top quality player, Jorud, and, you know, to dismiss him in that fashion, you know, just to show some, to show the quality of Akash, what he can do.
01:18I think, you know, he's also a guy, like all of us, you know, the more confidence you give him, you know, it's almost like there's a little bit more energy behind the ball,
01:27and hopefully that delivery he'll play over on his phone tonight and then bring a couple of more of those tomorrow.
01:33Moni here.
01:34Moni, can you just tell us about the challenges of bowling on such batting-friendly pitches, where much of it happens when the ball is relatively new?
01:42Yeah, I think your skill really gets tested on a surface like that.
01:49The margin for error is slightly, it's a lot smaller than, you know, on a surface, obviously, that's nipping around a little bit, and that's going to be a challenge for us tomorrow.
01:59You know, I thought we moved slightly away from our plans in the first innings, and in a way, also, with, you know, runs on the board, you want to go and take a couple of more risks,
02:09but tomorrow for us, it's just going to be asking those questions on a good length, because we know, as the ball gets a little bit softer, it is harder to strike.
02:17But, yeah, just happy with the 3-2 night.
02:23Moni, a word on Siraj and the way he's come up.
02:27He had an indifferent tour of Australia, and he was struggling to get through the batting line-up.
02:34As a lead bowler, you expect one to do that.
02:38Now, do you feel that with Bumrah not there, he's taken up that responsibility, looks better, in a better rhythm?
02:45Can you talk about the conversations you had with Siraj?
02:48Look, for me, Siraj, he is a guy that, you know, I've got a lot of respect for.
02:54I think he's a guy that always will put his body, you know, push it to the limits.
02:59I think sometimes, you know, the guilty part of him is trying too hard.
03:04So, for us, it's just managing that sort of aggression, managing that intensity, because he really bows, you know, with his heart on his sleeve.
03:12If he runs in, he wants to put in a performance for Team India.
03:16And, you know, I think sometimes those sort of things can give you that inconsistency.
03:21And, you know, in this this match, you know, he's now the leader of the attack and got the wickets up front.
03:26But for me, you know, in terms of effort and energy and, you know, with a sore body, he's always, we'll put his hand up and he wants to bowl over.
03:35So, yeah, I don't think sometimes we give him enough credit for that.
03:40We always, you know, look at the wicked column.
03:43But there's some bowlers that will do the hard yards and will do the dirty job for the team.
03:48And he's that type of bowler that will create you one or two options.
03:51And, you know, let's take sometimes the bad spell, you know, accept that as a bowler and look at, you know, the good things that he's doing with the ball.
03:58Mone, can you give us an idea of any conversations that might have happened around the timing of the declaration, how many overs were left?
04:09How much does the way England play or chase play into that, especially, I guess, when you know that there could be a bit of weather around in the morning, a bit of rain about?
04:17Yeah, that's a good question.
04:18I think that was, you know, we did speak about it a lot sort of during the day.
04:24But I think we see that it's still a good weekend.
04:26Even, you know, our boys were batting quite comfortably there towards the back end, you know, batting against four or five runs and over.
04:33So, with you having the extra day, I mean, weather, you know, you can't really control that.
04:39You know, it was getting us into a comfortable position with a bat.
04:43And then, obviously, tonight, you know, have 20, 20-plus overs at them under hopefully gloomy gray skies and, you know, get the two or three wickets.
04:51And we got that, which is a bonus for us.
04:53So, yeah, tomorrow morning, that first hour is going to be crucial.
04:57We saw this morning that, you know, if you get the ball in the right area, there was a little bit of assistance.
05:01And, you know, yeah, so we just need to be on the money with that tomorrow.
05:04Do you still expect them to chase?
05:07I think that's their style.
05:09They're going to probably hurry.
05:11Brook is a guy that likes to take the game on and is an entertainer.
05:14So, you know, it is an exciting day of cricket tomorrow.
05:18Moni, interesting that you said the guys got off the plans when they went short in the first innings with that old ball.
05:26What is the best way to go about it?
05:29Because the ball is getting soft, the pitches are flat.
05:32So, like, 30, 40-year-old ball.
05:34Then what's the best way to just, you know, go about it?
05:37Look, I wouldn't say off the plan.
05:40Like, for me, personally, on this sort of surface, you want to see the field where you can still have both options, using the short ball and trying to nick a guy off.
05:48I think, at times, when you, you know, get too predictable, it can be a little bit easier to score.
05:56Of course, the surface is slow.
05:57But, I mean, both those batters are attacking batters.
06:00They were going to take it on.
06:01And credit to Schupen, you know, he took a gamble there for a couple of overs to potentially get a wicket.
06:06England at the time was 80 for 4 for 5.
06:08So, you know, to chase another wicket there, there's no harm in that.
06:13Just on a declaration again.
06:18Yes, sorry.
06:18Hi.
06:20No one in the history of Test cricket has chased more than 420-odd.
06:23Were you really in there with the target at 550, 570?
06:29Were you really in there worried that England would knock that off?
06:34Worried?
06:35No, not really.
06:36You know, I think if a team scores 500-plus on the final day, then they deserve to win.
06:43So, I think it's just, you know, a little bit more time.
06:46Ideally, give an hour, a little bit more than an hour attempt tonight.
06:51You know, with, obviously, you know, day five around the corner.
06:54So, yeah.
06:56Moni, you said earlier that you think England will try and chase it down.
07:02Or Harry Brooks said so, at least.
07:03If that does happen, does that play into your hands?
07:06It's definitely going to be an exciting day of cricket.
07:08I mean, I did say last night in the media that they're going to chase, you know,
07:12go at everything or anything that we set for them.
07:14So, look, yeah, like I said, they're attacking players.
07:17That's a brand of cricket they want to play.
07:19They probably might have a go at it for a while and then reassess.
07:23But, yeah, I think we're in for an exciting day of cricket.
07:27I mean, it's still fast scoring.
07:28The wicket is still playing nicely.
07:30So, let's see what tomorrow brings.
07:32Last two.
07:33Moni, it's amazing to see that we are still thinking about, you know,
07:37chasing down 600 in the fourth inning.
07:40Often in test cricket, there is a talk about balance between bat and ball.
07:45Often pitches back home in India often get criticized for having,
07:48it is too heavy for the spinners.
07:51We saw a pitch in Cape Town when India played match finished within two days.
07:54I think you played that test match in Brisbane.
07:56I think that played within two days.
07:57So, how do you see compared to those kind of pitches if those pitches are not promoting test cricket?
08:06What about this pitch?
08:07Is this right promotion of test cricket by having this kind of a pitch?
08:11Look, I mean, obviously, England, they've been successful playing this sort of way,
08:15chasing high totals.
08:17You know, I know a lot of teams would rather prefer to bat out for three or four sessions on day five
08:22and shake hands and take the draw.
08:24But, you know, that's their thing.
08:25And they back themselves to bowl teams out.
08:28And, you know, if teams set them a total of 400, they're happy to take it on.
08:33So, that's great for the game.
08:34It's great for cricket.
08:36But, yeah, I think teams will also then, you know, start to be slightly more street smarter
08:41and learn from their mistakes and plan it a little bit better.
08:46Hi, Mone.
08:47I'm Virat Kohli.
08:48He's on his social media today.
08:49Well-played, Starboy.
08:50Rewriting history.
08:51Onwards and upwards from here.
08:52You deserve all the best.
08:53Two amazing innings this time in Edgbaston as well.
08:57What has your team said?
08:59What have you said about his performance so far in the game?
09:02Yeah.
09:02I mean, obviously, also just, you know, very happy for Shubman as captain on a big tour,
09:08coming to England, you know, to play over here.
09:12Big crowds.
09:13A lot of expectation, you know, on his shoulders.
09:15And I think he's handled it very well so far.
09:18And he's been very confident, walking around, sort of in the training, connecting well with the guys.
09:24And then as a captain and leader, you need to go in the middle and produce the goods.
09:28And I think so far he's been, you know, exceptional.
09:31Edgley getting the scores and now here back-to-back.
09:35So, yeah, that's great for you if you're a captain, if you can front up, because the rest will follow.
