India’s bowlers have just leaked 500 runs in a Test innings for the first time in more than a decade outside Asia or the Caribbean, and Morne Morkel found himself fronting up to explain why. The bowling coach conceded there were no easy answers – pace down, lines too straight, Washington Sundar introduced late, Shardul Thakur picked for balance – yet he kept returning to one core theme: extra batting insurance.
Pressed about the continued absence of Kuldeep Yadav, the left-arm wrist-spinner who has not played a single Test on this tour, Morkel offered a familiar rationale. “I think it’s finding when he comes in, how we can find balance and how we can get that batting line-up to be a little bit longer and stronger,” he said. “We’ve seen in the past that we’ve lost wickets in clumps. Kuldeep is world class and he’s bowling really well at the moment, so we’re trying our best to find ways for him to get in. But unfortunately, with that, just to balance with batting throws it out a little bit.”
In other words, the selectors fear a soft lower order. England’s batting often races to 400 in a day; India want at least 400 in an innings. “I do think at the end of the day you need runs on the board, and for us obviously giving that a little bit of extra batting protection, wanting to get totals of 400-plus,” he said. “You need it against England, especially the way they play, their brand of cricket.”
That policy looks awkward when the pitch turns as early as day two. “But to be honest, the wicket so far has been dry and it’s actually spun a little bit. So that brings Washington into the game. It brings Jaddu [Jadeja] into the game. So Kuldeep, we are trying to find a way for him, but it is just more that consistent runs from our top six that we want so that we can bring a guy like Kuldeep in.”
Some would argue a true strike bowler can save more runs than a No. 8 who averages 20. Morkel did not dismiss the idea. “There’s always an option of going in with quicks and picking your six best bat,” he acknowledged. “All those discussions we have had or we do discuss. But I think so far in this match, the last two Test matches, the guys who have played have done a good job in terms of spin bowling. We were ever so close to winning that Test match at Lord’s. We had a great test match at Edgbaston. So I think so far we’ve played good cricket, good cricket bar yesterday’s bowling performance.”
Why, then, did the attack stall after showing real menace earlier in the series? Morkel felt the group “went searching” on day two, drifting straight and feeding England’s pads. Day three brought better lines but not enough vigour. The pace drop – sometimes five to six kilometres per hour – stood out. “That’s something that we’re trying to get our heads around,” Morkel said. “On a surface where it gets a little bit flat, you need a little bit of energy behind the ball. I think that’s definitely one of the factors for us so far in our bowling innings. Just getting that little bit of extra zip off the wicket to create the opportunities for caught behi”
His sentence trailed off, which felt apt. India’s attack, brimming with options on paper, suddenly looks short of answers in the middle. Conditions for the fourth day should still offer turn, and reverse swing may yet reappear, but the bigger call looms for the next Test: stick with depth or back the match-winner sitting on the bench.
Either way, Kuldeep waits.
