The Morkel household in Pretoria, South Africa, is in two minds. The reason: the India vs South Africa T20 World Cup Super 8 clash on Sunday. The elder son of the family, Albie Morkel, is the consultant coach of South Africa, while the younger son, Morne Morkel, is the Indian bowling coach. So when India take on South Africa in the Super Eight at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on February 22, Mariana Morkel may be the most conflicted cricket fan on the planet.
At her home in Pretoria, Mariana will be torn between supporting South Africa - the country for which Albie Morkel played one Test, 58 ODIs and 50 T20Is and now serves as consultant coach during the ongoing Men's T20 World Cup - or India, where her younger son Morne Morkel, who represented the Proteas in 86 Tests, 117 ODIs and 44 T20Is, is now the bowling coach.
When asked in the pre-match press conference whether he had exchanged coaching notes with Morne, Albie said, "No, we don't talk to each other. I think my mother, she's more worried than us. She doesn't know who to support - India or South Africa."
Morkel declared that the real tournament begins now, insisting that South Africa's passage through the group stage was merely the first box ticked on what he expects to be a demanding road to the title.
"I think the World Cup really starts now, even though we had a tough group. Now you face India, possibly Australia or Zimbabwe, and the West Indies in our group. So it's really tough. It's going to be all good games. Yes, there will be more pressure on those games as you get closer to the playoffs.
"But I feel we've got a very experienced group of bowlers, and the batting is better. Guys have been exposed to pressure situations - whether in the IPL, other leagues, or international cricket. It's a little bit different, but players who can handle pressure will actually thrive in those circumstances, where there's a bit more pressure on the games. So I'm not too worried," he added.
With IANS inputs
from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/baz1HPN
No comments:
Post a Comment