'The 2016 T20 World Cup is definitely on my radar', says Albie Morkel

It’s been a while since Albie last played for South Africa

South African all-rounder Albie Morkel is targetting next year’s T20 World Cup despite being on the sidelines for quite sometime now. Even though his brother Morne has been a regular feature in the side for all 3 formats, Albie has not been in the selectors radar. And he said he hopes things would change courtesy of his performances.

Speaking to ESPN Cricinfo, Morkel also revealed that he had a tough time dealing with depression. "I went through that phase when I reached the burnout stage. That was a case of overdoing it. I played the domestic season, I played in the IPL, Champions League, I played county cricket in England, and I played the Caribbean [Premier] League so it was just too much for me. I think the key is just to find a balance between playing enough cricket and also having time for yourself and your family. If you are just playing cricket day in and day out there will come a stage where normally the first thing you see is a change in the attitude, body language and then the performance," he said.

Preparing for a comeback

A couple of years back, Morkel did make a statement saying that ‘he doesn’t see himself playing for South Africa again’, but he cleared his stance on it by saying that he was misunderstood. "When I said, 'I don't think I will play for South Africa again,' it's not that I said 'I don't like to.' I am just being realistic.

"Also I am at an age where the South Africa selectors are building for the future. That doesn't necessarily mean I have no desire to play for South Africa. It doesn't mean I don't want to try or train harder or stay motivated. I think it was written about a couple of years, just flew a little out of what I actually meant."

When asked about next year’s T20 World Cup in India, this is what he had to say, "Definitely, that's on my radar if I can perform really strongly back home this summer. Then I know I will have a chance, and I'll really like to play in another T20 World Cup."

He also said that he plans to take it one year at a time now before calling time on his career.