“Credit to Morkel, Gauti Bhai & Surya”: Shivam Dube on His Bowling Breakthrough vs Australia

Shivam Dube credited Morne Morkel, Gautam Gambhir, and Suryakumar Yadav for helping him improve his bowling after his strong all-round performance against Australia.

Shivam Dube credited bowling coach Morne Morkel, head coach Gautam Gambhir, and captain Suryakumar Yadav for his improved bowling display in India’s 48-run win over Australia in the fourth T20I at Carrara Oval. The all-rounder dismissed Mitchell Marsh for 30 and Tim David for 14, helping India seal the series 2-1. Earlier, he contributed 22 runs off 18 balls after being promoted to bat at No. 3.

Dube explained that India’s total of 167 was competitive given their strong bowling attack and effective plans. The strategy focused on forcing Australian batters to target the longer square boundaries, measuring over 80 metres, instead of hitting straight. Dube said the approach worked well, as the bowlers executed their plans smartly and maintained control despite Australia’s aggressive batting.

“167 on this ground is definitely a good score because of the quality of bowling we have, the spinners and the fast bowlers. I trust them and the whole team trusts our bowlers. 167 on this ground was definitely a good score because of the quality of bowling we have. When I got the chance, I knew that I had to bowl, especially Morne, Gauti bhai and Surya prepared a good plan for me. Morne also helped me a lot. He gave some small, small tips which made my bowling better,” Dube was quoted as saying by Sportstar.

“Definitely, it’s a T20 game and any of the batters can come and smack, but on this ground, where the side boundaries are big, we had planned it very nicely and we had confidence that we can stop them. The plan was to bowl on the sides which have bigger boundaries because it is difficult to hit big. I think the boundaries were 80-metres plus. We knew it wouldn’t be easy to hit. The plan was to bowl smartly and when a batter is set, force him to hit on the bigger sides than the small sides,” he added.

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With the win, India gained a 2-1 lead in the five-match series. The final game will be played at the Gabba in Brisbane on Saturday, November 8.