Morne relishes role as Daredevils' first-change bowler

New Delhi, April 11 (IANS) South African fast bowler Morne Morkel has no complaints about coming in as the first-change bowler for Delhi Daredevils in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Morkel, who forms a great opening pair in the South African team with Dale Steyn, said it doesn't matter if he is opening the bowling with Daredevils or not; what matters is whether he is making an impact.

"I am fine with it. The ball is still pretty new and I come to bowl in the third or fourth over. It doesn`t matter whether I am opening the bowling or coming as one-change. I am happy to do any job for the guys or what the captain wants," Morkel said after Daredevils beat Super Kings here Tuesday night.

Morekl was the star of the show bagging two for 19 from his stipulated four overs. He is also the leading wicket-taker for Daredevils with seven scalps from three games.

"I believe there is no need to change the winning recipe. The current strategy is working for us. I am fine if I am given the new ball but there are two ways of attack. One should have a different gameplan for different conditions," said the 27-year-old.

Morkel said inclusion of Kevin Pietersen and Mahela Jayawardene bolstered the side. Pietersen and Jayawardene's 61-run third wicket partnership helped them cruise to an easy win.

"It was important to start off well at home and also come back to winning ways after the game against RCB. Luckily, we have pulled through. We had guys coming in (KP and Mahela) with that extra bit of energy that we needed. Preparation in the last couple of days has been superb going into the match," he said.

Asked if showers in the last two matches helped Daredevils to win them, since they opted to bowl on both occasions, Morkel said: "We have summed up the conditions pretty well. The key is to communicate well as a bowling unit as in what should be the length to bowl."

Morkel also supports the idea to bowl first after winning the toss.

"It`s quite nice if you can strike a couple of wickets early on and put the batting team under pressure and try to chase a low total. I believe there are pitches where it`s difficult to score and chasing might prove to be a lot easier."

Morkel also praised Daredevils fielders, who effected four run-outs.

"It`s an important thing for us to be strong on the field and back the bowlers up. This will put the batting team under pressure as it may be tough sometimes to score. If they can`t get the ball away due to great fielding, it`s awesome for the bowling team. I thank the support staff who have made the boys work really hard as this was one area where we needed to improve," he said.

Asked about four run-outs, Morkel said they took place since the bowling unit was able to exert pressure on Super Kings.

"It`s just that the ball landed in our court today. We also created pressure as a bowling unit. It was becoming difficult for them to score," he said.