The upcoming five-match Test series between India and host Australia in the latter’s home summer for the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 is expected to be a thrilling contest, and the left-arm quick Mitchell Starc shares his excitement ahead of it, besides sending a warning to the best batter of the opponents.
Whenever it comes to the battles between the two countries, Virat Kohli always stands with a different mindset, with both the bat and in the field, showing aggression from shoulder to shoulder against the opponent’s sides.
Under Kohli’s captaincy, India was able to record their first red-ball series win down under during the 2018/19 summer, before the team carried the same flavor and aggressive brand of the game during the 2020/21 visit to repeat the same result under the captaincy of Ajinkya Rahane.
“Managed to get him out once or twice”- Mitchell Starc
The New South Wales pacer, Mitchell Starc, was present in both the series they lost against India at home and is excited to change the score line and enjoy their very first red-ball series win over India since 2014/15 when they polished them under the leadership of Steve Smith.
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Mitchell Starc was the fourth joint-highest wicket-taker of the 2018-19 BGT series as he finished with 13 scalps at an average of 34.53 and a strike rate of more than ten over with a best of 3/40 in an innings, which was pretty poor compared to his quality.
The Sydney-born didn’t enjoy a great time either during the 2020/21 BGT, caging 11 wickets in eight innings at an average of over 40 and a strike rate of nearly 12 overs, with a best of 4/53 in an innings. Those poor performances led the team to the defeat.
The veteran is, however, looking forward to his battles with his Virat Kohli, besides sending a warning to the batter.
“I enjoy my battles with Virat Kohli just because we have played a lot of cricket against one another. We have some good battles; I have managed to get him out once or twice, and he has no doubt scored a fair few runs against me. So, it’s always a good contest, and the one we both enjoy.” Mitchell Starc expressed in an interview with Star Sports ahead of the Border Gavaskar Trophy 20204-25.
Regarding his encounters against Kohli, the left-arm pacer has given away 236 runs in 394 deliveries at an average of 59 and a strike rate of around 60, besides dismissing him four times in the game’s longest format.
In the case of his performances at home, Mitchell Starc has picked up only 48 wickets in 18 games at an average of around 40 with a strike rate of around 70, besides having an economy rate of 3.44. That’s his highest average against any opponent in his red-ball career.
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When it comes to playing at home, the 34-year-old, who has grabbed 358 Test wickets in 89 games at an average of 27.74 and a strike rate of around eight overs, celebrating 14 five-wicket hauls and a couple of ten wickets at home with a best figure of 6/50 in an innings, always loves playing at home.
Starc has bagged 217 Test scalps at home in 50 Tests at an average of 26.28 with seven five-wicket hauls. He will look to bring developments in the upcoming summer to record a series win over India and end their losing streak.