Coach Morne Morkel's Verdict: What Went Wrong For Indian Bowlers At Gabba

Jasprit Bumrah was the lone bright spot in India's bowling lineup, claiming five of the seven wickets that fell on the day.

Morne Morkel shared insights into what went wrong with India's bowling performance at The Gabba.

Source : @BCCI / X

India's overreliance on Jasprit Bumrah was evident once again on Day 2 of the Gabba Test against Australia. Without Bumrah's brilliance, the bowling attack appeared toothless, struggling to contain the Australian batters. Despite reducing Australia to 75/3 in 33.2 overs early on, India failed to maintain pressure, allowing the hosts to finish the day strongly at 405/7 in 101 overs.

Bumrah was the lone bright spot in India's bowling lineup, claiming five of the seven wickets that fell on the day. His exceptional performance etched his name in history as he became only the second Indian fast bowler, after Kapil Dev, to achieve 12 five-wicket hauls in Test cricket. However, the lack of support from other bowlers underlined India's growing dependency on their pace spearhead.

At stumps on Day 2, India's assistant/bowling coach, Morne Morkel, shared insights into what went wrong with India's bowling performance at The Gabba.

"Today, Akash Deep bowled well, I thought. Siraj had cramps. He still ran in at the close of play. Bumrah is the number one bowler in the world, and we need to back it up. I can’t fault other seamers," Morkel said in Brisbane.

Morkel stressed the importance of Indian bowlers devising a better strategy to counter Travis Head, who played a game-changing innings. Head’s explosive 152 off just 160 balls at the Gabba left the Indian bowlers searching for answers. None of India's tactics seemed to trouble him.

"We need to get better at bowling 50-80 overs. In the first session, we bowled well; they put up a partnership with the softness of the older ball. We have game plans, but are we executing them? That's something we have to discuss. We need to look at whether to persist with the plan despite Head hitting for runs or change it up. That's something we will discuss tonight and over the next couple of days," Morkel added.