Mitchell Starc dominated the last World Cup to a level rarely ever seen from a fast bowler. But this time around he has to combat injury, ordinary recent form and a country where he has struggled in ODIs.
I have never seen a better 50-over bowler than Starc at his peak. Wasim Akram was wizardly. Shane Warne was phenomenal. Glenn McGrath was relentless. Muttiah Muralitharan was remarkably consistent.
Yet Starc in his pomp was equal to any of them.
Across a 35-match streak from January 2015 to January 2017, Starc was a wrecking ball, taking 76 wickets at 17. This bonanza wasn’t based on routing weak nations either. In fact, he reserved his best for the top teams. Against the other three semi-finalists from the 2015 World Cup, Starc ran amok in that period, hoarding 26 wickets at 11.
He was the best new-ball bowler on the planet, continually making key breakthroughs in the first ten overs with his late swing, intimidating pace and startling bounce.
Starc was also the best death bowler thanks to his scorching, pin-point yorker. And he was also effective in the middle overs, with his captains frequently using him in a short spell in an effort to stall the opposition’s momentum.
In this period, Starc put together one of the greatest individual performances ever seen across a World Cup. He took 22 wickets at ten as Australia won their fifth World Cup, and astoundingly conceded just 3.5 runs per over in that tournament despite playing on flat pitches.
In early 2016, he became the fastest bowler of all time to 100 ODI wickets, reaching that mark in just 52 matches. To underline how incredible an achievement that is, consider that it took 77 matches to get there for Australia’s greatest-ever ODI bowler, Glenn McGrath.
At that stage of his career, three years ago, Starc was the most valuable one-day cricketer on the planet. He was just 26 years old and looked on target to potentially overtake McGrath as Australia’s GOAT.
But one thing McGrath possessed which Starc never has is durability.
McGrath kept cruising along like a Maybach until he retired from international cricket at the age of 37. In his final year, McGrath was still the best ODI bowler in the world, dominating the 2007 World Cup with 26 wickets at 13.
Former Australian cricketer Glenn McGrath (Photo by Amal KS/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)
Starc, meanwhile, has been held back by his body since reaching those lofty heights in 2015 and 2016. In the past two years he has featured in only ten of Australia’s 34 ODIs. Not surprisingly, given this lack of continuity, Starc’s form dipped sharply in that period as he averaged 34 with the ball.
He struggled, in particular, against England who possess the world’s best batting lineup. In five matches against England last year, Starc averaged 38 with the ball and went at a whopping 6.3 runs per over, miles above his career economy rate of 4.95.
Meanwhile, the World Cup will be played in the place where he has laboured most – England. Starc has never cracked the Old Dart, in any format, and has averaged 38 from his eight ODIs there.
He will arrive in the UK next month for the World Cup not having bowled in a limited-overs international for nearly six months due to a pectoral injury.
Admittedly, Starc is familiar to playing big games fresh back from injury. His eight-year international career has been interrupted endlessly by injuries.
But swiftly regaining touch and momentum in a World Cup is a very difficult task. If he can achieve that then Australia will become frightening opponents. If he labours, Australia’s chances of causing a tournament upset will be dented significantly.
AREH
Roar Guru
Not sure, but he remains a part of their WC squad.
dungerBob
Roar Rookie
Fully agree with that Ryan. At his best Starc is a laser guided missile merchant but at not much below his best he's little more than a net bowler brought in to provide cannon fodder for the big hitters. I wonder if this is because he's more an athlete and not so much a natural bowler. McGrath could bowl on one leg and at half pace and still get good players out but I doubt Mitch could pull that off.
AREH
Roar Guru
I don't disagree with that either; the situation where Starc would be almost not worth selecting would be when the body is not 100% and/or he's leaking too many runs and not bowling well, such is the difference between when 'On' and not.
Mashrur
Roar Rookie
Maybe in tests, he has gone through a lean patch recently. But in odi's, he is still right up there with the best in the world. It's shockingly unfair to say that he is "nearly not worth selecting at this point". He is a match winner and is on the verge to return to his old menacing form. And we've also seen some glimpses of his comeback vs Srilanka earlier this year. Class is permanent, form is temporary. A lot of the greats of this game have had their runs of bad form, maybe Starc is having one too. It's just a part of the game.
Mashrur
Roar Rookie
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JayG
Roar Rookie
Why no Ross Taylor?
Harvey Wilson
Roar Rookie
Starc might be equal to other white ball greats, but i would still rather watch Wasim and Waqar at their toe crushing best. None better at that!
Targa
Guest
Only 5 of the NZ players are going to the World Cup with most of the CWC squad either in India or the UK. New Zealand XI squad Tom Latham (capt), Todd Astle, Hamish Bennett, Tom Blundell (wk), Doug Bracewell, Matt Henry, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Henry Nicholls, Seth Rance, Hamish Rutherford, Blair Tickner, George Worker, Will Young, Will Somerville
Chui
Guest
A Rusty Starc sounds like something from the Urban Dictionary.
JamesH
Roar Guru
I seem to recall that they are being classed as 'A' matches.
mickey of mo$man
Guest
the cricket world cup isnt some foreign t20 tournament... its a world cup, just as important as an ashes IMO, and that is coming from a test tragic himself.
mickey of mo$man
Guest
no doubt, if Warner can continute his form in England and Starc fires early and for the whole tournament than we will be very hard to beat.
Censored Often
Roar Rookie
Keep him, the Hoff and Cummins in cotton wool for the Ashes. We have sufficient hit n giggle talent to perform well in the CWC but we have no hope with the Ashes without these bowlers (or at least two of them). I know the cash is with the shorter form of game and this makes it difficult but I'm a test cricket tragic and can't see the value of risking test cricketers health on a glorified exhibition tournament (albeit a financially lucrative tournament if we can win it).
Paul
Roar Guru
Those games against New Zealand in May in Brisbane are not counted as ODI internationals, Ronan? I assume not from your piece ? In any event, those games become crucial in getting an idea about the likely Australian bowling lineup. Obviously the match conditions will be completely different from what he will get in England, but Starc needs to bowl with rhythm. He was just starting to get that against Sri Lanka in the second Test. When he does that, the rest falls into place, ie the pace, the late swing, the confidence to bowl yorkers, etc. Hopefully that will develop in England. The same comments could equally apply to J Ricahrdson. Where's he at with his rehab, Ronan? Also wondering if you saw the piece about Hales being dropped by England from all international cricket? That can't help their WC or Ashes chances.
jameswm
Roar Guru
Dark haired left arm quick called Mitchell. There’s a few similarities. Starc was lethal that WC. If he’s at 70% of that, and add in Cummins and others, and Warner’s in the form it seems, we’re a shot for sure.
AREH
Roar Guru
It's uniquely amazing isn't it. A firing Starc in that 2015 WC form is the best ODI bowler in the world, and capable of winning Australia the tournament. On the other hand, you get the other side of the coin where his body is letting him down, and as a result not able to use the new ball effectively and erratically leaking runs, he is nearly not worth selecting at that point. Such a wild contrast I can't recall in too many other players. One reason he's been compared with Johnson on occassions. He remains Australia's greatest asset heading into this WC.
Kopa Shamsu
Guest
You can't really ignore that some part of it is due to past administration's hilarious "player rotation & management policy " every other match. The "high performance " thingy didn't help much either. IMO, both starc & hoff' s downwards form has something to do with how they have been played after 15 world cup. Entire setup was a disaster. Both of them were playing some kind of scattered matches , 1 or 2 over here , some over there. But in that last test match, against srilanka, we saw glimpses of real starc which might suggest he is getting there. I can't remember, but somewhere I read he went back to state coach before that match, couple of days before bowling coach of national team stepping down. Cant tell how much truth in there. Hopefully he rediscovered himself.
Mashrur
Roar Rookie
I've got a feeling that he is gonna crank it up again this world cup. I too believe that he shouldn't have been rested for the odi's against India, Aus did wrong there. With all said, i also think that he is going to make a great partnership with the best bowler in the world right now, Pat Cummins. Both could complement each other really well. So yeah, excited!! :)