IPL 2020 | Bounce-back ability key for bowlers in T20 cricket, asserts Chris Morris
Chris Morris, who has been a revelation for RCB this season, has asserted that bowlers are bound to get smacked in T20s and it’s the bounce-back ability that separates the best from the rest. Morris also thanked the RCB medical staff for helping him recover from a freak injury prior to the season.
Far too often in the past, be it in the case of Yuvraj Singh or Tymal Mills, RCB have been guilty of miscalculating and overpaying for players in the auction and so when they purchased Chris Morris for INR 10 crore, ahead of IPL 2020, there were jokes, inevitably, thrown around. Despite his street-smartness, the general notion was that RCB had overpaid by some margin for the South African seamer. However, with his performances this season, the 33-year-old has, in fact, made the sum look like a bargain.
Morris, in 5 matches in IPL 2020, has picked 9 wickets and has transformed the face of RCB’s bowling. Interestingly, it’s his economy rate of 5.00 that has stood out, with the right-armer hardly getting whacked by the batsmen. Now a veteran with seven years of IPL experience under his belt, Morris, however is wary of ‘getting hit’ in the shortest format.
Speaking to Cricbuzz, the 33-year-old revealed that, despite having bowled economically thus far, he knows he is bound to have bad days and claimed that what’s important for bowlers in T20s is to have the ability to back oneself and bounce back.
“I haven't been really smacked (around in IPL) yet, but that's going to come unfortunately. That's the nature of the beast -- the IPL,” Morris told Cricbuzz.
"I just have to keep my clarity. The moment you lose clarity of what you want to do, that's when everything gets side-tracked. The bounce-back ability needs to be good. As a new-ball and death bowler, you are going to get hit for six, you will get inside-edges for fours. It is about how you fix the next ball.
“If the next ball gets hit for a six, then just bowl the next, keep repeating, give your best. You have to continue to get better. Like I said, I've been very lucky, I have got wickets, I haven't been hit for runs. I hope it continues, if it doesn't it is about how you limit it. It is a tough game, but I enjoy doing it."
Morris was primed to spearhead the RCB attack from match one, but the pacer picking up a freak injury prior to the tournament meant that he had to sit out the first five games of the competition. Thankfully for RCB, the South African has not shown a tinge of rust or discomfort post the return and Morris thanked the club’s medical staff for their thankless efforts.
"It's just nice to feel important. The medical staff were incredible. For them to get me back on the park first of all was really good.
"I've never had that type of injury before. It was a new thing for me. I got it while I was batting, I wasn't hit by the ball or anything, I just hit a shot and tweaked a stomach muscle. It's the first time I've done that. So I didn't know what to expect. How long it was going to take. We worked really hard, the medical staff, myself... It was a tough four and half weeks. We grafted in the gym, we grafted on treatment tables.
"It was day in, day out. I had the machine in my room treating myself throughout the night. Literally I would wake up every two hours and ice myself throughout the night. It was a hard graft and here we are. We are happy to be playing. As a medical team, they were all happy I could get back on the field and play."
Naturally, being the most expensive purchase, Morris has been given the most important roles in the sides, be it bowling up-front and at the death with the ball or finishing games with the bat. The 33-year-old revealed that he is blessed to have been trusted with the responsibility.
"Ah, I think I'm in a blessed position, to be honest. So, there are high pressure points that you want to be in as a cricketer. That's where you want to get tested as a cricketer. You get to bowl fast, bowl yorkers and smash sixes (laughs). What more do you want? I have been very fortunate. I haven't been really smacked (around in IPL) yet, but that's going to come unfortunately. That's the nature of the beast -- the IPL.”