Under pressure and on the move: India coach notes mental fatigue in camp amid ‘busy’ schedule

India’s fast bowling coach Morne Morkel on Friday praised the bowlers for continuing to perform for the team despite the “mental fatigue” caused by a busy schedule.Indian cricketers have had a busy few months playing several bilateral series and also competing in the Asian Games in Japan.“I read everything that is written on social media. One thing we sometimes forget is that mental fatigue plays a big role. We have to manage that and you have to be smart about it. If you look at this T20 side, some players have gone to the Asian Games and then gone straight to the whole series (vs West Indies),” Morkel said on the eve of the fifth T20I in Bengaluru.“Then they had to fly to Delhi for a presentation there (meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi) and back here in the morning. And now we have to prepare them for the game. That’s the reality and these guys are human too,” he added.Morkel emphasized that the players need enough recovery time between matches to perform at their best.“And for me, your performance and your skills will be better when you recover well, when you sleep well and once you’re mentally refreshed, and that’s the challenge. Now we fly to New Zealand. It’s a busy schedule there as well.”With another busy schedule ahead, the former South African fast bowler urged people to be measured in their criticism of the team’s bowling performance.“And that’s a tricky thing sometimes. So I have a lot of respect for these guys, given the performances they’re producing for Team India at the moment and the schedule we have.”“You know, and that’s why sometimes I think we can allow them to make a mistake and allow them to play a game and not be on them, because of the mental load and the expectations on those players,” he added.