New Delhi: Former South Africa fast bowler Morne Morkel has been named as the new bowling coach of the Indian team, BCCI secretary Jay Shah confirmed on Wednesday.
The 39-year-old pace icon has worked with India’s new chief coach Gautam Gambhir in the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Lucknow Super Giants.
He was Gambhir’s primary choice to take the post in the Indian team.
“Yes, Morne Morkel has been appointed bowling coach of the senior India men’s team,” Shah told PTI.
Morkel played 86 Tests, 117 ODIs and 44 T20Is for South Africa and bagged a total of 544 international wickets.
Morkel, who played international cricket between 2006 and 2018, has been active in coaching roles since his retirement as a player. His last international assignment was with the Pakistan national cricket team where he served until November 2023 as the bowling coach.
Morkel has previously worked with Gambhir during his stint as a mentor of the LSG. He joins Gambhir’s coaching staff which comprises assistant coaches Abhishek Nayar and Ryan ten Doeschate.
Gambhir and Morkel worked together for two years at the Super Giants where the former served as a mentor. Even after Gambhir moved to Kolkata Knight Riders and head coach Andy Flower signed for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Morkel remained with LSG and worked under the new head coach, Justin Langer.
Morkel’s first assignment to be the Bangladesh series
Morkel was due to join the Indian cricket team on their recent tour of Sri Lanka but couldn’t link up due to personal issues. He will take over as bowling coach for the upcoming home Test series against Bangladesh, starting in Chennai on September 19.
Morkel will replace Paras Mhambrey as India’s new bowling coach. Mhambrey’s tenure ended alongside head coach Rahul Dravid following the success at T20 World Cup 2024. He took the bowling coach responsibilities of the Indian national cricket team in November 2021.
Morne Morkel was Gautam Gambhir’s primary choice to take the bowling coach post in the Indian team. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
