Experienced Aussie pacer Mitchell Starc is on the verge of a monumental individual milestone as Australia prepare to host Bangladesh in a two-match ICC World Test Championship series, starting August 13 in Darwin.
Starc, the 36-year-old left-arm speedster needs just a handful of wickets to leapfrog two legendary figures -India’s Kapil Dev and South Africa’s Dale Steyn – on the all-time Test wicket-takers list.
The Numbers Game
Mitchell Starc enters the upcoming Test series with 433 Test wickets to his name across 105 matches.
To surpass Kapil Dev (434 wickets): Starc needs just 2 wickets to pass the 1983 World Cup-winning Indian captain.
To surpass Dale Steyn (439 wickets): Starc needs 7 wickets to move past the South African pace icon.
If Starc claims 7 or more wickets during the two Tests – in Darwin and Mackay – he will elevate his tally to 440 wickets, claiming a spot among the top 10 wicket-takers in Test cricket history.
Most Wickets In Men’s Test Cricket History
Player Wickets
Muttiah Muralidaran (Sri Lanka) 800
Shane Warne (Australia) 708
James Anderson (England) 704
Anil Kumble (India) 619
Stuart Broad (England) 604
Nathan Lyon (Australia) 567
Glenn McGrath (Australia) 563
Ravi Ashwin (India) 537
Courtney Walsh (West Indies) 519
Dale Steyn (South Africa) 439
Kapil Dev (India) 434
Mitchell Starc (Australia) 433
The opening Test at Darwin’s Marrara Oval presents ideal conditions for Starc’s trademark lethal swing and searing pace.
Starc Opens Up On Potential Milestone
While Starc was pleased to learn he could surpass a pair of fast-bowling legends during the upcoming series, the left-arm pacer insisted that personal milestones are not his priority, with Australia’s focus firmly on winning a second World Test Championship title at The Oval next year.
“It means I’ve played a bit. It is cool and very humbling to be spoken about it with those guys,” Starc told Australian Associated Press.
“But that stuff doesn’t mean a whole lot while you’re still playing. You don’t get too far ahead,” he added.
Australia currently lead the World Test Championship standings and will aim to secure two positive results against Bangladesh before facing a challenging run of fixtures over the next seven months, including a three-Test away series against reigning champions South Africa in October, a four-Test home series against inaugural WTC winners New Zealand around the new year, and a five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy showdown against 2023 runners-up India.
No Signs Of Slowing Down Of Late
Although Starc is in the twilight of his career, he continues to perform at the highest level. He leads the wicket charts in the current World Test Championship cycle with 46 wickets in eight Tests and was the highest wicket-taker in Australia’s recent Ashes victory over England with 31 scalps.
Starc’s willingness to back his ageing body has been a key factor in separating him from his fellow fast bowlers in recent times, and he continues to put in the hard work needed to remain at his best.
“When you’re 36 and you’ve been around for 16 years, you’d like to think you’ve improved or got better at something,” Starc said.
“You’re also around that long because you’re able to develop and learn and improve. And you add in a few things like the wobble seam, consistency and other things. I have a pretty clear mindset on it all,” he added.
Australia Test squad for Bangladesh
Pat Cummins (captain), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster
AUS vs BAN Series Schedule
First Test: August 13-17, Darwin
Second Test: August 22-26, Mackay
