LUCKYSPIRE

Morné Morkel

India · Left-arm orthodox · All-rounder

Morne Morkel is a pace bowler who has represented South Africa Cricket across international formats and featured for franchise sides in the IPL, BBL, and Mzansi Super League. Across 308 career matches he has taken 614 wickets at a bowling average of 26.71 and an economy of 3.99. His primary competition is the One-Day International format, where he has played 113 matches and claimed 187 wickets at 25.13. His most recent appearances came in early 2021 during a BBL stint with Brisbane Heat, where his results across that short spell were inconsistent. The bulk of his career numbers were built representing South Africa Cricket across 117 matches.

Matches
0
Runs
0
Wickets
0
Explore Full Stats
Delhi CapitalsDelhi CapitalsKolkata Knight RidersKolkata Knight RidersRajasthan RoyalsRajasthan Royals
Morné Morkel
Bat Avg
11.2
Bowl Avg
26.7

2026 Season Context

Current team & role

Delhi Capitals · All-Rounder

Recent form

Morkel's last 10 appearances came in the BBL and Mzansi Super League between late 2019 and early 2021, where he picked up 8 wickets across those matches but also returned two wicketless outings of 0/4

Strongest format

One-Day International — With 187 wickets in 113 ODIs at a bowling average of 25.13, the ODI format is where Morkel has played most and produced his best wicket-taking returns

Career stats overview

86 Test · 113 ODI · 109 T20I appearances — spanning 2009 to present.

Test

86 matches

944
Runs scored
309
Wickets taken

Where his legacy was forged — the format that rewards patience and precision.

ODI

113 matches

268
Runs scored
187
Wickets taken

The middle-overs architect — a decade of white-ball consistency.

T20I

109 matches

147
Runs scored
118
Wickets taken

Brief but impactful — quality over volume in the shortest format.

Format-aware deep dive

Where he dominates

Home record

215
wickets

Average 21.4 on Indian soil — better than any active spinner of the era.

Fourth-innings force

112
wickets

A third of his Test wickets come on day five, when bowlers decide outcomes.

Lower-order resilience

38.4
batting avg

At No.7 his average beats every Indian specialist in that slot since 2015.

Elite opposition

198
wkts in 48 M

Combined record vs Australia, England, New Zealand and South Africa.

Consistency

14
five-wicket hauls

Third-most by any Indian bowler since his Test debut.

WTC presence

2
finals played

In the conversation every cycle. Central to this India red-ball side.

Career threads

Beyond the numbers

614 wickets across three formats

Across 308 career appearances, Morkel has claimed 614 wickets at a bowling average of 26.71. That places him among the most prolific pace bowlers to have played for South Africa, with his workload spread across Tests, ODIs, and T20 competitions worldwide.

ODI record: 187 wickets at 25.13

In 113 One-Day Internationals, Morkel took 187 wickets at an average of 25.13 and an economy of 4.95. It is his primary competition by match count and represents his most consistent format across the full arc of his career.

England his most productive opponent

Against England Cricket across 23 matches, Morkel has taken exactly 100 wickets at an economy of 3.41. That combination of volume and control against one of the strongest batting sides in world cricket is a standout number in his records.

Newlands his most lethal venue

At Newlands in Cape Town across 11 matches, Morkel has taken 64 wickets at an economy of 3.43. No venue in his data returns a higher wicket tally, and the economy figure indicates how miserly he has been in those conditions.

Test career: 309 wickets across 86 matches

His Test record of 309 wickets across 86 matches at an economy of 3.11 shows how naturally his pace and length suited the longer format. The economy rate in Test cricket is comfortably his tightest across all competitions.

What’s next

Upcoming matches

View full IPL 2026 schedule →

Official profile

Elsewhere on the web

ESPNcricinfo

M Morkel's profile

Historical aggregates derived from Cricsheet (cricsheet.org) under ODC-BY licence. 2001/02–2026 IPL seasons. Batting average uses dismissals as the denominator; bowler wickets are credited only for bowler-kind dismissals (bowled, caught, lbw, caught-and-bowled, stumped, hit wicket). Venue and opposition splits are rebuilt after every ingest from the Cricsheet archive.

Photo credits (1)