‘We’ve got Quinton de Kock coming in, so it has to be a selection headache” - Morne Morkel on Kyle Mayers’ impressive form

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) bowling coach Morne Morkel has admitted that the think tank will have a selection headache once Quinton de Kock is available owing to Kyle Mayers’ brilliant form.

In De Kock’s absence due to national duty, Mayers has partnered LSG skipper KL Rahul at the top of the order. He has played two scintillating knocks in IPL 2023 so far. The 30-year-old cracked 73 off only 38 balls against Delhi Capitals (DC) and followed it up with 53 off 22 balls against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Monday, April 3.

De Kock, who hammered 508 runs in 15 matches last year at a strike rate of 148.97, was likely to slot into the opening position after joining the LSG franchise for IPL 2023. However, Mayers’ success has complicated matters. Praising the West Indian all-rounder, Morkel said at a post-match press conference:

“I played with him a little bit at St Lucia Zouks back in the day in the CPL. It is just amazing to see him the way he has moved on and sort of progressed into a quality white-ball player. I saw him in Durban and he played these sorts of innings as well. Upfront he puts the bowlers under pressure. It’s great to see Kyle Mayers in top form.

“We’ve got Quinton de Kock coming in the next day or two so it has to be a selection sort of headache, but luckily that’s not for me to think about. It’s fantastic to see him up front, firing and in form. If your international players are going well in this tournament it’s always a bonus.”

Despite Mayers’ brilliant knock against Chennai, Lucknow went down by 12 runs, failing to chase down a target of 218.

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“There’s a lot to like about Mark Wood” - Morne Morkel

During the post-match conference, Morkel also opened up about fast bowler Mark Wood’s success.

The England cricketer has claimed eight wickets in two matches, although he went for a few runs in the game against CSK. Sharing his thoughts on Wood, Morkel said:

“There’s a lot to like about Mark Wood’s bowling. He is running in. He is bowling in the 150s. He is bowling that aggressive length. He is a strike bowler for us. For me it is essential to sit with him and work out what we are going to expect from certain surfaces.

“It is only his third game in the IPL. In his first game (a couple of years ago), he played for Chennai. I think it was quite expensive, and then he played in the previous night against Delhi Capitals in Lucknow and took a fantastic five-for, so he is still finding his feet in the sub-continent, especially in the IPL where the margins are tough.”

Wood claimed 5/14 on his debut for LSG against Delhi Capitals (DC). He registered figures of 3/49 in the loss to Chennai.