New Delhi: India's bowling coach morne morkel Admitted that the team was “surprised” by how quickly the Eden Gardens pitch “deteriorated” after a dramatic performance on the second day, which saw 15 wickets fall and the first Test tilt strongly in India's favour.Playing at 37 for 1, India were all out for 189, but Ravindra Jadeja (4/29) and Kuldeep Yadav (2/12) put South Africa under serious pressure at 93 for 7, with only captain Temba Bavuma (29 of 78) showing resistance, leaving the visitors with a slender lead of 63 runs.Morkel admitted that the team did not expect the wear and tear to occur so rapidly.
“Yeah, look, I mean, to be honest, we also didn't think that the wicket would deteriorate so quickly… When we saw the first few hours we all thought it was a good wicket, so it got worse very quickly, which was unexpected,” he said after stumps.He said that this kind of unpredictability is what makes playing in India challenging.“Sometimes that's the beauty of playing in the subcontinent… you need to be able to adapt and react to conditions and that's the kind of challenge we are facing here at the moment.”Despite superficial behaviour, Morkel stressed that India supported his strength.“We have quality in terms of seam and spin… we cover both bases. For us it's just a case of taking what's in front of us and playing it as best we can.”He said the pitch was described as “a good wicket” in pre-match talks, with the focus on attacking South Africa's batting.“The talk before the game was that it would be a good wicket and it would be hard work… So we planned more about how we would attack and target the South African batting line-up. “We took consideration of circumstances out of the equation.”The plan was to adjust from session to session, he said.“We thought it would get worse as the match went on… We would make changes day by day and play it session by session.”Pointing to Bavuma's composure, Morkel said runs could still be scored.“Temba showed tonight that if you can rotate strikes and have a solid game plan it's worth a battle.”He said that difficult spells will have to be avoided while batting.“I thought this morning it would be a surface where it would be difficult to score in stages, but then in two or three overs you can score some runs. It's about fighting through those little tough times.”KL Rahul's 39 remains the top score of the match and Morkel said there is no one method that will work on this surface.“I don't think there is any set format where you can stick to. You need to put a bit of pressure on the bowler, rotate the strike and be busy at the crease,” he said.“Everyone's strengths are different… it's up to the batsman to find his best way of scoring whether it's attacking, sweeping or just rotating the strike.”He believes that India remained on par in the first innings.“We all agree that we could have scored 50-60 more runs… It is difficult to rotate the strike. Unfortunately, Shubman's early dismissal (retired hurt) meant there was another new batsman at the crease.”With both Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant taking charge during the innings, Morkel said leadership is a collective effort.He said, “From the outside it is calm… We can suggest how we think we can put more pressure or take wickets. At the end of the day, we win together, lose together and plan together.”“Everyone has their own way… There is never a wrong or right way. You reflect after the game, try to get better and find your way to win.”Even as the pitch surprised both sides, India's selection – with four spinners omitted along with Sai Sudarshan for Axar Patel – suggested a better understanding of the conditions. But Morkel stressed that this would not become a fixed pattern.“We will take it Test by Test… Pick the best XI that we think can win. Not thinking too far ahead. Play the game well, learn, then reach Guwahati and see what we get,” he said.
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