'Need To Score Runs': Morne Morkel Acknowledges India's Struggles To Score Vs NZ After Initial Blow

Team India was put to the test against New Zealand despite being at home as the Tom Latham-led side brutally exposed the Rohit Sharma -led side's struggles. The Pune Test also turned out to be a nightmare as Team India continued to struggle with the bat. On the other hand, the bowling aspect rose to the occasion as spinners came in handy to deliver a dominant showcase.

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Morne Morkel Bravely Points Out Team India's Flaws During Pune Test vs NZ 

India was dismissed for 156 in the first essay of the second Test on Friday as New Zealand firmly took control of the game after they were bundled out for a pitiful 46 in the opening Test's first innings. India's difficulties were apparent, and bowling coach Morne Morkel acknowledged that the team was suffering greatly because of the batters' persistent inability to score runs in the first innings at the post-play press conference.

“I never like to have a punch up between batters and bowlers but, in Test match cricket you need to score the first innings runs. If we put our hand up, we haven't been able to do that. There are world-class players in our batting lineup. I know that individually, they’ve got their processes and they know how to go about those things.

“Hopefully, we can iron those mistakes out because it's costing us at the moment — not getting the runs on the board — but I'm pretty sure there's enough experience, enough knowledge amongst them to rectify that. I back the team (to come up) with a strong response in our second innings. I’m excited to see how they bounce back and how they play this situation and the conditions,” Morne Morkel said.

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India could lose their first home Test series since 2012–2013. Coach Morkel, however, was hoping that the Indian batters would perform better in the second inning. In order to avoid losing the game and the series, he added, India will need to continue to believe and support their understanding of the circumstances.

“Hopefully, we can iron those mistakes out because it's costing us at the moment — not getting the runs on the board — but I'm pretty sure there's enough experience, enough knowledge amongst them to rectify that. I back the team (to come up) with a strong response in our second innings. I’m excited to see how they bounce back and how they play this situation and the conditions.

"We have to believe. This game is a funny game. Our guys are attacking players, there’s guys that know these conditions well. Our talk before this game was that we are masters in these conditions, we know how to sum these conditions up,” Morkel added.

[With PTI Inputs]