Australian ace pacer Mitchell Starc comments on his continuation in the game of cricket. The 34-year-old’s last appearance on the ground was in the 2024 T20 World Cup match against India.
Mitchell Starc currently holds 358 wickets, performing in 89 matches Test matches. Starc aims to stretch his career in red-ball cricket while giving himself leisure in white-ball cricket. The 34-year-old looks forward to listing among the 400 wicket-takers bowlers in the Test and complete his 100 Test games. The Australian pacer is anticipating the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against India starting November 22 in Australia. The Border-Gavaskar Trophy will include five Test matches between the nations ending on January 7, 2025.
I Am Not Someone Like Jimmy Says Mitchell Starc
Mitchell Starc considers himself fortunate to represent in three formats of cricket over a long period now. The 34-year-old also signaled his retirement from the game. According to the Australian pacer, he is unable to bear the arrangement of games across three formats and is finding it difficult to keep up with his fitness. Via The Sydney Morning Herald, Mitchell Starc said that,
“I’ve been very lucky to play three formats for a very long time. How long that will continue, I’m not sure. The scheduling of three formats is getting harder and harder and finding blocks of time to spend time on my body is going to take away from others,”
Furthermore, Mitchell Starc drew a comparison between him and Jimmy Anderson. According to the Australian ace pacer, he will not be able to continue in first-class cricket as Jimmy, who continued till 42 years of age in his Test career. Jimmy Anderson could swing the ball both ways till his retirement, which Starc doesn’t consider him to be doing. Mitchell Starc also said that many bowlers are waiting to fill in for him and are better. In addition, Mitchell Starc is now seeking Test cricket more and is looking forward to this summer. He added,
“Tests are still definitely the pinnacle for me and I think my body will play a part in that decision whenever it gets to it. I’m not someone like Jimmy who played until he was 40-odd and had incredible skills to swing it both ways. I’ve never been that bowler and there’s plenty of better bowlers around the country to fill that job. I’m really looking forward to this summer and I haven’t put any expiry date on anything just yet,”
Lastly, Mitchell Starc talked about the Ashes series and the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which are around the corner. The Australian pacer considers Ashes and the Border-Gavaskar Trophy equally competitive. Mitchell Starc also mentioned the current standing in the ICC Men’s Test team rankings, with Australia on top and India standing second. Starc pointed at some spice in the series against India as both the nations stand first and second. He said,
“It’s thrown it right on par with an Ashes series being [expanded to] five Tests. The Border-Gavaskar doesn’t have that length of history [as the Ashes] but I think the level of competitiveness between both trophies is on par. We’re currently one and two in the Test table so there will be a bit of spice to it,”