The quick bowling combination of Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep was praised by India bowling coach Morne Morkel for surpassing the Edgbaston surface and putting his team on the verge of a historic victory abroad. The two have taken all 13 of India’s wickets so far on a pitch that has stayed suitable for batting as of the fifth day. They have performed admirably in the absence of talisman Jasprit Bumrah.
Morkel remarked, “Very, very happy so far,” following Day 4. “After the last test, we had a thorough or productive conversation about the things we wanted to work on, and I believe we’ve done that. The fact that they are without one of their most seasoned players to respond to those kinds of situations is encouraging for a developing bowling attack.
Morkel was especially happy for Akash Deep, who has become a differentiator in the two attacks.
He has demonstrated an unrelenting ability to attack the stumps from wide of the crease, and late on the fourth day, he once again displayed magic by castleing Joe Root with a full delivery that angled in and seamed away late.
“He is an attacking bowler that asks questions, bowling at the stumps a lot,” Morkel stated. “Asking questions on the stumps is, in my opinion, one of the golden rules in England. Therefore, it fits his approach for these kinds of settings in the UK. And it’s encouraging for us to see him running in quickly after recovering from an injury.
“That was a fantastic delivery… Joe Root is a top-tier player, and to fire him in that way only goes to show how good Akash is and what he is capable of.” I believe that he is a guy just like the rest of us. He will hopefully play over his phone tonight and bring a couple more of those tomorrow, and the more confidence you give him, the more energy he seems to have behind the ball.”
Siraj, who has been willing to push his body to the limit for the team, also received special recognition from the former South African speedster. The most of conversations, understandably, centre on Bumrah’s workload, although spinner Ravindra Jadeja is the only player to surpass Siraj’s total of 3013 balls bowled since the WTC ’23 final. The five-wicket haul he so frequently threatened to take finally occurred in Birmingham, on one of the flattest pitches, after he bowled gamely on more helpful surfaces in Australia late last year with little reward.
“Siraj is a guy that I’ve got a lot of respect for,” Morkel stated. “He is a man who constantly challenges his physical capabilities. I believe that he occasionally tries too hard for us, which is his guilty side. He truly bowls with his heart on his sleeve, so it’s about controlling that level of anger and passion. Those kinds of things, in my opinion, can occasionally cause inconsistencies.
“He got the wickets in a match where he was now leading the attack, but in my opinion, he constantly puts forth his hand and wants to throw that over, even though his body hurts. We don’t always give him enough credit for it, in my opinion.
Additionally, Morkel justified India’s first-inning short-ball strategy as a legitimate way to get a wicket after the ball had softened. The compromise, which included Prasidh Krishna’s spell reading of 5-0-50-0, was one they could afford because India was sitting on a mountain of runs.
“For me personally on this sort of surface, you want to set a pitch where you can still have both options: using the short ball and try and nick a guy off,” Morkel stated. “I believe that the surface can be a little bit easier to score on when you become too predictable. However, keep in mind that both of those batters are attacking batters. They were going to take it on, and Shubman [Gill] deserves praise for taking a chance there for a few overs in hopes of taking a wicket. At the moment, England was 80 for 5. Therefore, there is no harm in chasing another wicket there.
“I thought we moved slightly away from our plans in the first innings, and in a way also with runs on the board you want to go take a couple of more risks but 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.”
India
