Morne Morkel appointed India men's bowling coach

Former South Africa cricketer Morne Morkel has been appointed as the new India men’s bowling coach. As per reports, his contract is set to kick off on September 1, and the development was recently confirmed by the BCCI’s secretary Jay Shah.

In recent weeks, it had been reported that Morne Morkel could join India’s coaching staff. Reportedly, it had been under the recommendations of India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir that Morkel had been hired. 

In the past, Gambhir had hailed Morkel as one of the best bowlers that he had ever faced, and revealed that they do have a nice relationship off the field. The duo has also worked together during their time with Lucknow Super Giants and fans will gear up for their reunion once more.

Even after Gambhir left Lucknow Super Giants to become the mentor of Kolkata Knight Riders, Morkel continued in the role for the side under new head coach Justin Langer.

It is worth noting that Gambhir’s coaching team consists of Abhishek Nayar and Ryan ten Doeschate as assistant coaches, and T. Dilip, who has been the fielding coach of the side for quite some time now. 

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Interestingly, Morne Morkel last served as the bowling coach of Pakistan during the ODI World Cup 2023, but had resigned from the role a few months before the expiration of his contract. 

Coming off fresh from an ODI series defeat against Sri Lanka, Morne Morkel will be keen on implementing the needed changes in the side. Team India have quite a long break before their next game. 

The Indian team will next be taking on Bangladesh in a multi-format series. Both sides will face off in two Tests, and three T20I matches, and with it being the first series for Morkel as part of India’s coaching staff, the former Proteas star will hope for a good start.