ADELAIDE, Dec 14: Mitchell Starc’s recent run in Test cricket has reignited a fascinating debate around his place in history, particularly when it comes to one of the most decisive moments in the game — the very first over of an innings. With a series of match-defining spells across different conditions and continents, the Australian left-armer is increasingly being spoken of as one of the most lethal new-ball operators the format has ever seen.
Starc is currently enjoying a purple patch rarely witnessed in the longest format. He has collected Player-of-the-Match awards in three consecutive Tests, two of them coming in the ongoing Ashes series, and has produced six-wicket hauls or better in each of those matches. Remarkably, he has bettered his own career-best figures in back-to-back innings, underlining a level of dominance that few fast bowlers manage at this stage of their careers.
The surge began in Kingston in July, a match that also marked Starc’s 100th Test appearance. In the second innings against the West Indies, he ripped through the batting order with extraordinary figures of 6 for 9, a spell highlighted by three wickets in the opening over. That performance set the tone for what followed. In the first Ashes Test in Perth, Starc tormented England opener Zak Crawley, dismissing him in the very first over in both innings to hand Crawley the ignominy of a pair. Brisbane offered another reminder of Starc’s early-over menace, with Ben Duckett falling to the first ball he faced in the pink-ball Test, even though Crawley narrowly avoided a repeat dismissal.
Across these three Tests alone, Starc has added significantly to an already impressive tally of wickets taken in the first over of Test innings. He now has 26 such scalps, moving within touching distance of England’s James Anderson, who leads the list with 29. Before the Kingston Test, Starc was tied for second place with Australian great Glenn McGrath and Sri Lanka’s Chaminda Vaas, both of whom had taken 20 first-over wickets.
What makes Starc’s numbers particularly striking is the relative lack of opportunities he has had compared to his peers. The Australian has bowled the first over of an innings 171 times in Test cricket, significantly fewer than Anderson’s 292. McGrath and Vaas bowled the opening over 199 and 180 times respectively, yet Starc’s strike rate in those overs eclipses them all, highlighting his ability to strike immediately rather than merely build pressure.
The wicket of Duckett at the Gabba also carried additional historical weight. It was Starc’s eighth wicket taken in the first over of a Test match, drawing him level with Anderson for the most such dismissals in the format. In the process, he went past legends such as Ray Lindwall, Richard Hadlee and Kapil Dev, all of whom managed the feat seven times in their illustrious careers. (Agencies)
