SA vs AUS: Mitchell Starc provides an update on his fitness ahead of semi-final 2 of CWC 2023

Mitchell Starc was rested from Australia’s final CWC 2023 league stage game against Bangladesh.

Australia speedster Mitchell Starc provided an update on his hamstring injury ahead of his team’s ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 semi-final against South Africa on November 16 in Kolkata.

Mitchell Starc has conceded he has not lived up to the heights of his spectacular 2015 and 2019 World Cup campaigns, but he will not let that deter him from pursuing a third global limited-overs crown this week.

With shoulder and groin concerns, Starc ended this year’s Test tour of England, where he played five of a potential six Tests throughout the World Test Championship final and Ashes series.

Mitchell Starc’s significant progress as a red-ball bowler resulted in him being voted Australia’s player of the Ashes, but he admits he has fallen short of his 50-over best at this year’s World Cup after being the leading wicket-taker in the previous two editions. He has 10 wickets at 43.90, surrendering 6.55 per over in this tournament.

“I Didn’t Have Much Of A Say In The Decision,”- Mitchell Starc

Mitchell Starc is still nursing injuries from this year’s Ashes series, prompting Australia’s selectors and medical team to overcome his protests and rest him for Saturday’s final group match against Bangladesh. However, the speedster refused to say whether these are still his primary injury worries, maintaining he will be fit to play in Thursday’s semi-final against South Africa in Kolkata.

“I didn’t have much of a say in the decision. I’ve carried a few things from the Ashes and it was a chance to give them an extra chance (to recover) before the semi-finals. If I only played when I was 100 per cent, I would have probably played 10 games. All bowlers around the world deal with stuff, we just don’t have to talk about it like batters do,” Starc was quoted by cricket.com. au.

The left-armer, who conceded his wish for a return to one new ball rather than two in ODI cricket will most likely go unheard, pointed out that two fresh Kookaburras typically shift conditions substantially in favor of batsmen at the start of an inning.

The absence of reverse swing at the close of an innings as a result of each ball receiving only 25 overs of wear and tear, as opposed to the full 50 when only one ball was used in one-day cricket, has also reduced Starc’s efficiency at the death.

Having been part of Australia’s 2015 ODI and 2021 T20 World Cup wins, Starc insisted he would not be overawed by the occasion of a knockout match on Thursday at the famed Eden Gardens.

“Whether it’s goosebumps or not, it’s just another game. I’ve played a lot of one-day cricket … (performing in big matches) is not something that’s really spoken about. It’s a very calm group, this one, and fairly experienced with a couple of younger, less experienced guys gelling in really nicely,” Starc added.

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