Team India bowling coach Morne Morkel has played down the Men in Blue’s inconsistency ahead of the upcoming T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final against England on March 5, which'll be played in Mumbai.

India, the reigning champions, were overwhelming favorites in the T20 World Cup but have had a mixed performance thus far. Despite being in a must-win scenario versus the West Indies, they were able to cross the finish line.

Before the second semifinal match against England, Morkel was questioned by the media about the Super 8 bowling performance, which included Varun Chakaravarthy, who, by his high standards, proved to be a little expensive.

"They are good teams; they play well. If you expect us to bowl teams around for 120 or 150...we are in the semi-finals; we have won games of cricket. We know the margins are small in India. It is not how you get to the semifinals. It is about the next two games, how you are going to play," said Morkel in the pre-match press conference.

Like India, England also faced hiccups with Nepal, almost causing one of the biggest upsets in T20 World Cup history in the group stage. However, Morkel stated that India has never discussed having that perfect game. India has lost one game in this tournament, to South Africa in the Super 8s stage.

"For us, that is something we haven't really spoken about, the perfect game. I think the quality of this team has been shown in that on the day somebody can put their hand up and put up a performance. Hopefully, in the last two games, especially tomorrow night, we can put that special performance in.

Unfortunately, we all know how the game goes; success is never guaranteed, but if we can give ourselves the best chance to go out and perform, that is what we strive for. A big occasion tomorrow night here, the semi-final, a great stadium to play a great game of cricket, so hopefully the boys can rock up tomorrow and just be calm and execute those plans," said Morkel.

India and England will be clashing in a T20 World Cup semi-final for the third consecutive time, and the score stands at 1-1, with England winning in 2022 and India demolishing them in 2024. India had also hammered England in a five-match T20I series at home last year, but Morkel stated that it is irrelevant now.

"Playing against England, they're a team that's street smart. There's a lot of quality on their side, batting quite long and deep, which makes them a very dangerous side. With the ball, they've got wicket-taking options. I think the way they approach a T20 game, fearlessly trying to take the game on, will give you opportunities, and it makes them a dangerous side. I feel tomorrow is going to be a good shootout between two aggressive teams," said Morkel.

Morkel also talked about the pitch and the atmosphere, as the weather in Mumbai is expected to be hotter, stating that it would be important to ensure the surface doesn't dry out.

"To be honest, we're not quite sure a day out how the wicket is going to play. I'm pretty sure you experience walking here; it's a lot hotter all of a sudden in India, so in terms of moisture and allowing the wicket not to dry out, I think it's going to be key to play well.

Team selection will go in terms of what we see on game day. From there, we just need to be smart in our skills, read the conditions, and adapt to them. Plan A is to go in with some sort of idea, but the key is to find the skill of how to play on the wicket on a specific night.

As I said, I'll probably have a better indication of what the surface is going to play like tomorrow. At the moment, because of the heat, they have given it a little bit of water, so it's quite soft, so it's quite hard to get a proper 100% accurate read on it," said Morkel.

He added that the toss will play a big role if there is dew. Heavy dew is expected in the second half of the game.

"I think the dew is always a big concern. But that's again something you can't control: the toss. If there is dew, tossing is important. I think at Wankhede there's always that extra bit of bounce. Guys can trust the bounce and lead through the line.

In saying that, that can also, as a bowler, bring you into the game. I just felt or feel that the margin here is a lot smaller. The ball travels; it's quite a small ground. So you just need to be really fighting that over, staying in the moment, and competing for every ball," he added.

(PTI inputs)