Morne Morkel to miss Sri Lanka tour for personal reasons, Sairaj Bahutule steps as interim coach

Newly appointed Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir will need to wait for his coaching team to come together since Morne Morkel might not be available for the Sri Lanka tour. The BCCI is almost finalizing a deal with the former South African bowler, who Gambhir recommended himself.

Gambhir and Morkel worked together for the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the IPL during 2022 and 2023. Gambhir has picked his own coaching staff, which is expected to include Abhishek Nayar and Ryan ten Doeschate.

T Dilip and new assistants join the squad

Nayar and ten Doeschate will join the team in Sri Lanka as assistant coaches, and T Dilip is likely to stay on as fielding coach. However without Morkel, India will not have a dedicated bowling coach for this tour since former coach Paras Mhambrey’s contract ended after Team India’s T20 World Cup 2024 victory.

Interim bowling coach as Sairaj Bahutule

JUST IN: Morne Morkel will not be travelling to Sri Lanka with the Indian team.

Sairaj Bahutule will serve as India Men's interim bowling coach for the six-match white-ball series.

🔗https://t.co/5YuuOzkrxT pic.twitter.com/RmsumOj5Xs

— Cricbuzz (@cricbuzz) July 21, 2024

According to Cricbuzz, Sairaj Bahutule will step in as interim bowling coach. Bahutule a former leg spinner with experience coaching domestic teams like Kerala, Bengal and the Rajasthan Royals (RR), will help the spinners on the subcontinent pitches. India’s squad has several skilled spinners like Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, and Kuldeep Yadav.

The report also notes that Morkel has traveled from Sydney to Pretoria to visit his sick father but is expected to join the team before their next international assignment, a home series against Bangladesh.

Gautam Gambhir will be officially introduced as the new head coach on Monday, July 22, in Mumbai. He will attend a press conference before leaving with the team and support staff for his first assignment.

Team India will head to Sri Lanka on July 22 and start their tour with three ODIs and three T20Is from July 27.