Team India bowling coach Morne Morkel backed Indian bowlers despite their struggles to keep the West Indies batters in check in the ongoing series. He also stated that the tough conditions on offer, with even mishits going for sixes, as well. The West Indies have punished Indian bowlers in the ongoing T20I series. They chased down a target of 250 in Ranchi. In Hyderabad, they posted 247-3 after being asked to bat first as well.

Speaking at a press conference ahead of the fifth T20I, he commented (via Sportstar): “It’s tough to operate in these conditions. It’s tricky especially when there’s a lot of dew around, and especially with the way the West Indies take the game on. In the past you would say, ‘Ok, that will give opportunities to take wickets’. But mistimed shots still go for sixes. We can just make sure every ball is the best ball we bowl.”

“It is a real test to bowl to him, but one that we really enjoy. We would always like to take the aggressive option – how to get the batter out? If we can bring the stumps in play, try using the short ball to him, and play around with the lengths. What we have not been good at is that we have changed things too quickly at times. We have to see if it was about execution or a good shot. But you can have all the plans in modern cricket, and players still adapt quite quickly,” he again added.

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Apart from batting-friendly pitches and small grounds, Morne Morkel also blamed fatigue and an unforgiving schedule for India’s bowling woes as well. He added that the T20I side recently returned from Japan after winning the gold medal at the Asian Games.

“Mental fatigue also plays a big part. This T20 side came back from the Asian Games, and is straight into a full series now. It had to fly to Delhi for the presentation [from the Prime Minister] and then arrive at 1 am here for this must-win game. We’re going to fly to New Zealand and there is going to be jet-lag before a jam-packed schedule. So, I’ve got a lot of respect for the performances we are producing. That’s why I sometimes think we can allow them to make a mistake and not be at them always,” Morne Morkel concluded.