“It’s great to have them in the team,” Morkel said of Prasidh and the team’s other specialist fast bowler, Harshit Rana. “I think they add a lot of variation to their attack, especially Harshit, who bowls at a good pace and finds a way to get some bounce off the surface.
“It’s his first tour, Prasidh had a bit of experience with India. A tour where he got a bit of playing time, but for Harshit he is a bit of an unknown. My message to him was that when I did my first tour here , Playing in Australia, an intimidating place, listening to the stories, following their advice But for me it’s just staying in your own bubble and finding those experiences, figuring them out for yourself.
“[Reddy] He’s one of the young guys we’ve mentioned, he’s got that kind of all-round batting ability. He’ll be a guy who can endure that finish first. Hit the bat a little harder than you think. So in these types of conditions where there can be a little bit of seam movement up front, especially the first few days. He will be a very accurate bowler from wicket to wicket. It is a beautiful opportunity for him to occupy that versatile position.
“Any team in the world always wanted the all-rounder to take that burden off their fast bowlers, just to give them a little more time to breathe. So how will we use it, how will Jasprit use it, maybe with the spinner, to “Giving yourself, whoever the other fasts are, time to catch your breath a little will be important. “He’s a guy that’s a player you can keep an eye on in this series.”
India’s batting may also depend on the emergence of some of their newer players. There is a chance that the XI they fielded on Friday (if Devdutt Padikkal gets the No. 3 spot and Dhruv Jurel the No. 6) could be the youngest, in terms of combined age, to start a tour since the 1947 series in Australia.
“It’s going to be a great learning experience for these guys,” Morkel said. “It’s the young lads who can take on a quality Test bowling group. Australia won’t bowl you many bad balls, but in saying that, you know, there is good leadership within the group that can help and calm the nerves.” . That, so I think as a group we’re all excited for the challenge, we know what’s coming, we know the wicket is going to be quick, it’s going to bounce and now it’s up to the individual. formulate your game plans and put yourself in a sort of battle state of mind, thinking that for the next 43 days it’s going to be tough cricket.”
India waiting for Gill’s fitness
“Shubman is getting better every day, obviously he took a hard hit in the simulated game, in the team game. I think with him it will be kind of a day-to-day process, fingers crossed he gets better, but I think they will wait, [and not] make a call with him until the morning of [match]”.
Gill was present at Wednesday’s training, but that was the extent of his involvement, even as the rest of the team went through a full training session in the sun. She was just with Rishabh Pant for a while and then left. The chances of him playing in Perth in two days’ time are still slim. Padikkal, who has been added to the team now after being asked to stay in Australia following his work with the Indian A team, is tipped to be a provisional No 3 batsman.
