Following a challenging performance by the Indian pace attack at Old Trafford, where England are on the driving seat, questions have arisen regarding the effectiveness of speedster Jasprit Bumrah with the new ball in the ongoing Test series. India’s bowling coach, Morne Morkel, has addressed these concerns, attributing Bumrah’s lack of early breakthroughs to insufficient pressure from the opposing end.
Bumrah has so far taken 13 wickets in this series at an average of 26.69, notably claiming a five-wicket haul in the first Test at Headingley. However, at Old Trafford, he managed only one wicket, that of Jamie Smith, as England’s opening pair, Ben Duckett (94) and Zak Crawley (84), established a formidable 166-run partnership, contributing significantly to their 186-run first-innings lead by the end of the third day.
Jasprit Bumrah faces new ball challenge
Speaking on Bumrah’s recent struggles with the new ball, Morkel revealed a conversation with the star pacer. “I had a conversation with Bumrah last night. He is obviously a guy who is highly skilful and he wants to create things for us with the ball,” Morkel told the reporters after the third day’s play in Manchester. He emphasized the critical need for support from the other end. “But at the end of the day, we need support from the other end as well. And I think that is, you know, a big thing in this sort of bowling innings is that we are struggling to create. We are finding it hard to create pressure from both ends.”
Morkel further elaborated that while Bumrah is a world-class bowler, the tendency of other bowlers to aggressively pursue wickets inadvertently led to conceding runs, thereby releasing the pressure Bumrah was trying to build. “And, you know, he sort of released that pressure. But, yeah, I cannot, you cannot say anything about Boom. He is number one in the world. He is skilful. And, you know, at times you are going to get in the wicket column. But I think also, you know, you need help from the other end,” he reiterated.
India’s fast bowling depth under scrutiny
The bowling coach also conceded that the extended five-Test series has become a “real test” for India’s younger bowling talents. India’s squad for England includes Prasidh Krishna, Anshul Kamboj, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Akash Deep. While Akash Deep showed promise with 10 wickets at Edgbaston, he was sidelined for the fourth Test due to injury.
Morkel highlighted the challenges of player conditioning, especially for those transitioning directly from the Indian Premier League (IPL) to a demanding five-Test series. “We play three, two-Test match series a lot and this is now the first time in a while we have gone into five. You know, it should not be an excuse but in terms of conditioning, getting the guys conditioned and get them ready for a five-Test series coming straight out of the IPL is sometimes an issue.” He stressed the difficulty in balancing recovery time with maintaining bowling workloads.
Acknowledging the current lack of extensive Test experience within the bowling unit, Morkel pointed out, “At the moment there is not a lot of experience with the ball. We have got Siraj and Bumrah that played a lot of Tests and then Akash has played a little bit but he’s out injured.” He concluded by stating that the team is in a phase of developing new talent, which involves a steep learning curve in international cricket. “So we keep on finding ways to bring new guys in that are learning now in international cricket, learning their trade in international cricket. So it is not easy at the moment but it is just a phase, a period that we need now to work through and get these guys fitter and stronger to last for five Test matches.”
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