Albie Morkel (L) with South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada during a practice session at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. (PTI)
NEW DELHI: Ahead of the final Group D clash against the UAE, South African consultant Albie Morkel brought a touch of humor to the press conference. Asked if he exchanges coaching ideas with his younger brother and Team India bowling coach Morne Morkel, the 44-year-old initially put on a serious face before smirking and saying: “No, we don’t talk (laughs). I think my mother is more worried than us. She doesn’t know who to support, India or South Africa.”With South Africa taking on India in their first Super Eight match at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday, the ‘rivalry’ between the Protea brothers will be something to watch.T20 World Cup | Albie Morkel press conference on South African bowling power, Rabada’s form
Since Morne became India’s bowling coach as part of head coach Gautam Gambhir’s support staff, some of the team’s individual bowling performances have improved significantly. His work behind the scenes with players like Shivam Dube enhanced the player’s role in the side.Albie, who is three years older than Morne, appears to be settling into his position as an expert consultant for South Africa, which the former fast bowler says is primarily bowling-oriented.“Yeah, it’s been an interesting term, the consultant. I’ve had to figure it out a bit myself. But obviously it’s anything that helps the team do well in the World Cup. I’m doing a bit of batting and fielding, I’m mostly concentrating on bowling for now. I’m doing some work with our all-rounders, swingers and things like that,” explained Albie, who was brought in for the T20 World Cup just before.His work with the pacers has paid off for the 2024 T20 World Cup runners-up, with fast bowlers accounting for most of the wickets, including two all-rounders.
South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada delivers a delivery during the T20 World Cup cricket match between South Africa and the United Arab Emirates in New Delhi, India, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
Although Kagiso Rabada (two wickets in four games) struggled for rhythm, Lungi Ngidi (8 wickets), Marco Jansen (7 wickets) and Corbin Bosch (5 wickets) kept the attacking pace impressive.“It’s a privilege to be with a team with such incredibly fast bowlers. The standards between the entire bowling line-up are really, really high. And it’s something we feed off each other well,” Bosch, man of the match for his 3/12 figures against the UAE, told reporters during the post-match press conference.“I think it’s the first time we’ve all played as a team so we’re just getting to know how we work as a unit. But we’ve done fantastic so far and there’s no extra pressure.”
South Africa’s Corbin Bosch delivers a delivery during the T20 World Cup cricket match between South Africa and the United Arab Emirates in New Delhi, India, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
Listening to Bosch, it’s clear that Albie has already made an impact in this short time, and from Albie’s own words, it’s evident that he knows what he’s doing off the field.“Look, I think we have to start first where our guys play their T20 cricket the most in South Africa. And the wickets, how can I put it nicely? It’s not the best for T20 cricket. So the guys will go through a lot in South Africa,” he said.“When you get here (to India), especially at this time of the year when wickets are still good before the summer, your variations, your slow balls and all those things, don’t play as much.“So it really focuses on nailing your yorkers. And I feel like that’s a skill that’s kind of lost, not just with us, but with most teams in the world. When I ask who’s the best death bowler in the world, you can probably name one, Jasprit Bumrah. He’s got a very good yorker.”“So it’s really just focusing on those skills that I wouldn’t say pitchers have forgotten, but with all the variations that come into play, I think pitchers can get blindsided by that.”It is also worth noting that the current group of pacers is so trusted by the management that even Ottniel Baartman, the top wicket-taker in the fourth season of the SA20, is not in the 15-man squad.South Africa, still unbeaten in the tournament, made four changes during Wednesday’s six-wicket win over the United Arab Emirates, leaving out David Miller, Jansen, Ngidi and Keshav Maharaj ahead of what they believe is the start of a “real World Cup”.The The influence of Stephen FlemingFormer Chennai Super Kings (CSK) all-rounder Albie Morkel has not shied away from acknowledging former New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming’s influence on his coaching philosophy.“When I started my coaching career, you always train as a player where if you want to change something, you can’t be on the pitch. I think you have to accept that fact and find ways because the players are under pressure anyway. If you want to change their game all the time as a coach, it’s not going to help anyway,” he said. “So it’s kind of finding that middle ground where you try to help, but also as a coach you don’t put pressure on the players. They know what they’re doing. If it’s real technical stuff, then you can work on it, but not during tournaments.”“I think my philosophy is that once you get to a World Cup like this and you start messing with the technical stuff, that’s when you confuse the players or the players can be confused. So now it’s more about how can I actually take the pressure off the guys, get them to believe in themselves and stuff like that.”“Steven was a big influence on that. I think he’s one of the only coaches, or maybe the only coach in the world, who’s been with another franchise for seventeen years. That’s unheard of, so he’s got to be doing something right. And I’ve definitely learned a lot from him.”