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Former Proteas allrounder and current T20 Specialist Consultant to the national team, Albie Morkel, believes their bowlers need to go back to the drawing board after a heavy defeat to India in their T20 World Cup warm-up match in Navi Mumbai on Wednesday night.
With the tournament getting under way on Saturday, and the Proteas opening their campaign against Canada on Monday, they don’t have much time to change things up, but their experiences in India over the past few months should help them get to grips with the conditions.
In December the Proteas played a five match T20 series in the country against the hosts, winning one and losing three, while one was washed out, and they again came up short in a high scoring contest against the hosts in their warm up on Wednesday.
Bowlers lashed
India lashed the Proteas bowlers around the park in amassing 240/5, which included two batters retired out, one through injury, before the South Africans could only reply with 210/7 in response, with one batter retired out.
Morkel explained that from what they saw, including against India in December and in the hosts’ T20 series against New Zealand last month, means bowling conditions will be extremely difficult going forward.
“I think we saw tonight, and the series that South Africa played in India a couple of months ago and New Zealand now, it’s a brutal environment as a bowler to come out and do your thing,” said Morkel after the match.
“There’s not a lot of bounce in the wickets. It’s really a low bounce and it’s skiddy with a lot of dew in the evening. So, as a bowler, you’ve got your work cut out for you.
“We tried a few things tonight, which we were happy about, but I think it’s back to the drawing board for us to get feedback from the bowlers as well. I think that’s important.”
The only bowler to come out of the game relatively unscathed was Lungi Ngidi, who conceded 23 runs in three overs, while Marco Jansen, 1/18 in two, and Kwena Maphaka, 1/19 in two, were the only other bowlers to go at less than 10 an over.
Worrying signs
It was a bit worrying to see pace spearhead Kagiso Rabada going at almost 15 an over, while Anrich Nortje seems to have lost his form built up during the SA20, as he was hammered for 57 runs in three overs, less than a week after he was smashed for 59 runs in three overs by West Indies at Centurion.
Morkel explained that Ngidi would thus have a big role to play at the World Cup, saying: “After his first over (that went for 14), he came back beautifully and that’s probably going to be his role in the team.
“He’s one of the seamers that possesses a really good slower ball and we’ll be looking to use that a lot more through the tournament.”
Morkel is also hoping that his experience will play a big part in helping the team go one better than their runner-up finish at the last T20 World Cup in 2024.
“Anything I can do to help this team win a World Cup. Whether it’s bowling, batting, fielding, (helping with) tactics, that’s what I am focusing on, not only on one discipline. Off the field I am also trying to help the guys with the experiences I have had in India, to get them over the line,” said Morkel.
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