Starc Reality: The rise of Australia's bowling spearhead - Mitchell Starc

The name Mitchell has been a household name in Australian cricket for many years. In the last decade, Mitchell Johnson has tormented some of the best batsmen around the world. Now the next Mitchell is here spearheading Australia’s pace attack, and continuing the trend of dominating with high-quality fast bowling.

Unlike his predecessor, Mitchell Starc might not appear as menacing or display express pace but make no mistake, what he lacks in those elements, he makes up with the bounce generated from his tall frame of 1.96m and the greater control of swing.

Starc clocked up a speed of 160.4 km/h in 2015 against New Zealand in the second Test which went on to be the fastest Yorker ever bowled and also the fastest ball ever bowled in a Test.

2015 was an eventful year for Australian cricket and for Mitchell Starc, with Australia lifting their fifth consecutive World Cup on home soil and Starc being named the Man of the Tournament for his 22 wickets at an economy rate of 3.58. This was a tournament which was studded with big hitters in the top order like Gayle, McCullum, and Kohli.

He was the leading wicket-taker in all forms in the 2015 calendar year, registering 87 scalps, even though he was injured after the inaugural Day and Night Test against New Zealand in Adelaide.

Starc was born in 1990 in New South Wales and started playing for his State team when he was 19. His performances were noteworthy and in the 2009-10 Australian Domestic Season he picked up 21 wickets with a best of 5/74, and also chipped in with a fifty.

After several experienced pacers were sidelined due to injury, Starc was called up late for the tour of India and made his ODI debut against India in Visakhapatnam in October 2010 where he remained wicketless and did not bat.

Starc made his Test debut against New Zealand in December 2011 in Brisbane and took two wickets in that match, and followed it up by a couple of wickets more in Hobart. So in that sense, he did not start with a bang.

Starc was left out from the subsequent Test series against India but recalled for the Test in WACA where he took four wickets. During the tour of India in 2013, Starc reached his highest individual score of 99, missing his maiden ton by a single run.

Starc was part of the playing XI in the third Test match against South Africa in 2012, where Australia ended up on a losing side but Starc reached his first five-wicket haul and career best figures of 6/154. He took his time to settle down at the big stage and make an impact.

In the recently concluded Sri Lanka series, Starc became the fastest bowler to take 100 wickets – in 52 innings – and broke the 19-year-old record of Saqlain Mushtaq who took 53 innings to reach the same landmark.

Starc was also a part of Sydney Sixers in the inaugural BBL league, where Sixers went on to win the tournament and Starc finished as third highest wicket taker with 13 wickets in six matches. He was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2014 auction and went on to become the strike bowler for them in the 2015 edition.

After the recently concluded series in Sri Lanka, Mitchell Johnson praised Starc for his bowling, and for becoming the leading wicket taker in the series “It was really exciting to see Mitch Starc perform well,” Johnson said in Perth.

“I thought he was really close when we went over to England for that last Ashes series and wasn't quite there. But he's shown that after his injury he's really committed to working really hard and did all the work.”

“I've kept in touch with him and he was really positive going into that series. To be the leading wicket-taker in Sri Lanka in those conditions was a real positive and a good step forward.” We could not agree more.

He looks all set to dominate at home as the lead strike bowler in the upcoming test series against South Africa and Pakistan. Especially on wickets that are going to provide bounce, and with his height, he would be difficult to negotiate.

He bowls the fuller ball, gets the ball up there, and especially on a wicket like the WACA with good bounce, he would be devastating. He is one of the few bowlers able to swing the ball even when he pitches the ball up. When swing is not a factor, his Mcgrath-like consistent accuracy and ability to move the ball off the seam comes in handy.

To quote Johnson again, “that Yorker he's got is very dangerous. He's always working to improve his game. He's still pretty fresh in Test cricket. He's only going to get better. He's going to keep breaking records, I think, as well. It's really exciting to see him play really well."

Starc is already starting to carve a reputation and name for himself, as he spearheads a young Australian attack to contest and compete with the best in the world. Still only 26, Starc has few good years ahead of him to bamboozle quality batsmen with his pace, swing and deadly accurate toe crushing Yorkers.

The latter weapon often helps him to be miserly in the death overs of the limited-overs format, and deadly against the tailenders in the test format.

Starc’s challenge will be maintaining his fitness through the gruelling schedule of games across all formats. He has some ways to go yet to establish his place at the top and be counted with the greats of the game. He certainly has the skill-set and talent, the opportunity and the determination to become Australia’s next great fast bowler.