South African fast bowler Morne Morkel has told KSN he would be open to the idea of returning to play for Kent in the future.

The 27 year old fast bowler played eight games for Kent in their 2007 Twenty 20 campaign, and this week is back at the St Lawrence Ground as the touring South African side take on Kent in a three day game beginning on Friday.

Morkel is expected to line up alongside Dale Steyn as the pair prepare for the upcoming Test Series against England, but it was being back at Kent that was the topic of conversation when KSN met him after netting on Thursday:

“I’ve had some quality memories playing here for Kent and it’s very nice to be back. It’s a pity we’re staying out of town as I had some good nights in the town, but it’s awesome to be back.”

“I enjoyed my whole four or five weeks here and we played some fantastic cricket with a great bunch of lads. The vibe and the environment were great, so for me it was always special and I’d always love to come back here.”

With international commitments and the lure of the Indian Premier League, players have little time to play in England nowadays, but Morkel told KSN how he’s jump at the chance of coming back to Kent if the opportunity arose in the future:

“It’s just a case of finding a window to fit it in, but I had a fanstastic time at Kent and one day, would love to come back and give something back.”

Despite it being a game between a Test side and an under strength Kent side, Morkel told KSN the South Africans will have to be on top of their game:

“We had a good run out against Somerset and blew away some cobwebs and this is our second warm up match and the last before the Test match, so it’s a big one for us. It’s important we focus on our skills and our disciplines and hopefully the weather will be good for that.”

With Mark Boucher having had to retire from international cricket due to an eye injury picked up at Taunton last week, AB de Villiers will don the gloves for the South African side this week, with Morkel admitting he was sad to see his friend fly home:

“It was very, very sad what happened to Mark and I’m a close friend of his. It was sad to see him go as to see the way he has prepared and trained for this series was unbelievable.”

“In a way we can take that as a motivation and really play this series for Bouch, so we’d like to go out and put in a special performance for him.”