Morkel on holiday ... for now

Times Media

TELFORD VICE, Colombo

Attention, please: Morne Morkel is on holiday. Do Not Disturb. At least, not until sometime today, when he will flip the flops off those arrestingly large feet and reach for his even bigger bowling boots.

“The next couple of days is about getting the body sorted,” Morkel said after SA won the first test against Sri Lanka by 153 runs in Galle on Sunday. “I’ve got a couple of blisters I need to attend to, so it’s just feet up and rest.”

Morkel said he would divide his down time between the pool, some stretching, and perhaps a light run. But only perhaps.

Can’t argue with that. Morkel’s contribution to SA’s victory started with almost two hours at the batting crease in which he shared 66 with JP Duminy for the ninth wicket, in the process ushering Duminy to his unbeaten century. Then he counted Kumar Sangakkara’s wicket among the three he took in Sri Lanka’s first innings.

But it was on the last day of the match that Morkel came into his own by refusing the Lankans respite from the battering they were taking from Dale Steyn. With his main weapon, bounce, taken out of the equation by Galle’s funereal pitch, Morkel settled on a fuller length and bowled with good pace and rasping intent for his reward of 4/29. He found a way. This time, Mahela Jayawardene and Dinesh Chandimal were among his victims.

The scandal that erupted when Vernon Philander was convicted of ball-tampering on the third day takes some of the gloss off Morkel’s achievement, as it does off Steyn’s match haul of 9/99, but there is enough left to highlight a fine performance.

“In this heat and humidity, when the ball is a bit soft it does take a bit of the battery life out of you,” he said. “I suppose the key for us in these conditions is for the bowlers to have a strong body language, because that lifts up the field. Also, if the Sri Lankan guys see that our fast bowlers are fired up, that sends a strong message.”

The second innings, Morkel said, was where the biggest challenge lurked, at least on the field: “When the ball was a little bit softer it is quite tough to come back in the second innings. It’s one thing getting the first 10 wickets but the second 10 is more important.”

Off the field, the battle was fought between the ears: “It’s hot, it’s humid and you need to prepare yourself for that. We have to get over those things. The wicket is flat, the ball is soft and we have to come up with a game plan. If you’re not mentally strong, you’re going to struggle.”

The happy ending for Morkel is that his form has earned him a few days off. “I’m quite happy with the way the ball is coming out so the most important thing for me is rest,” he said. “I will turn my arm over the day before the test.”

The test starts tomorrow. Get out there, big fella. This is your wake-up call.