Gautam Gambhir asks BCCI to hire former Pakistan bowling coach and South African legend Morne Morkel: Report
According to reports, Gautam Gambhir is eager to hire South African legend Morne Morkel as India's bowling coach, but will the BCCI let foreign support staff?
PTC News Desk: According to Cricbuzz on Thursday, Gautam Gambhir has asked the BCCI to take former South Africa bowler Morne Morkel under consideration to be Team India's bowling coach. The most recent to surface following Vinay Kumar and Zaheer Khan is Morkel. Vinay Kumar was not one of the BCCI's favorite players.
There have reportedly been talks about Zaheer, but now Gambhir has expressed interest in Morkel. Morkel coached Pakistan's bowling during the ODI World Cup in India last year, but he left the PCB before the competition was over.
The article also stated that Morkel, who resides in Australia with his family at the moment, has already had conversations with BCCI. But making a final choice could take some time. VVS Laxman's NCA support staff may travel with Gambhir for the Sri Lanka tour, which begins with the T20I series on July 26, if the board is unable to decide on India's future batting, bowling, and fielding coaches within the next week or so.
The T20 World Cup saw the conclusion of the careers of head coach Rahul Dravid, batting coach Vikram Rathour, bowling coach Paras Mhambrey, and fielding coach T Dilip. But Dilip might be granted a reprieve.
Gambhir and Morke's strong relations
Morkel has a lengthy history with Gambhir. Morkel was one of the hardest bowlers the former India opener had ever faced. It was a major factor in Gambhir's decision to bring Morkel on board with the Kolkata Knight Riders as captain. Morkel was a member of the KKR team from 2014 to 2016.
But Gambhir remained close to the lanky pacer, who played for South Africa in 86 Tests, 117 ODIs, and 44 T20Is between 2006 and 2018. The left-handed hitter recruited Morkel to be their bowling coach after moving to the Lucknow Super Giants as a mentor.
Before Gambhir joined the Kolkata Knight Riders, the two of them worked together at LSG for two years. The South African remains LSG's bowling coach.
Hurdles in getting Morkel on board
There are a few obstacles to overcome before Morkel joins. The first one is at the level of BCCI. The board does not want to hire support staff who are based abroad. During the tenures of Ravi Shastri and Rahul Dravid, there were no foreign recruits. It was also a major factor in the board's decision to reject Jonty Rhodes as fielding coach. Until Gambhir forces a change in the board's policy, there's no reason to think it will support Morkel.
The procedure that BCCI uses is allowing the head to freely select his support personnel.
The next challenge, should Gambhir persuade BCCI, will be persuading Morkel to travel for nearly ten months every year till the end of 2027. He resides in the opulent Seaforth neighborhood of northern Sydney with his spouse, Channel 9 sports broadcaster Roz Kelly. The pair is parents to two kids.
Morkel will be a great addition to India's coaching group if everything goes according to plan. In his brief tenure as a coach, he has established himself and has a wealth of game expertise. He was frequently credited with helping Nasem Shah, Haris Rauf, and Wasim Junior improve during his time with Pakistan.
Also Read: Akshay Kumar tests Covid-19 positive, to skip Anant-Radhika wedding