Mitchell Starc’s teammates are in awe of his performance after Australia’s victorious World Cup campaign. Starc, the player of the tournament, finished with 22 wickets at 10.18, enhancing his reputation for bowling lethal yorkers.
“It’s incredible to see how well he’s bowled against the best batsmen in the world — the pace, the swing, the control that he’s got, the variations,” Shane Watson said here on Monday.
“It’s amazing, his skill set through all different phases of the game. It’s amazing to think someone so young has been able to do what he has on such a big stage.”
Starc’s senior colleague Mitchell Johnson too was impressed. “He deserved to win the player of the series. He bowled outstandingly,” hesaid.
“I had the pleasure of bowling with Glenn McGrath and Brett Lee — those guys that you idolise and watch on TV growing up. We don’t have those legends of the game yet. But some of these guys will be. We’ve got a great bowling group.”
Starc’s Test career, though, has stuttered, with him having played only 15 matches since his debut in December 2011. He struggled in the first innings of the Brisbane Test against India, when Shane Warne called his body language “a bit soft”.
Watson was confident, however, that his limited-overs form would spill over into the Test arena. “He made a couple of technical adjustments in that Sydney Test match and he bowled beautifully through it,” he said.
“We saw him turn it around in Sydney. This could now be a stepping stone for him. There’s no question (he can succeed). His confidence has changed and he will turn it on in Test match cricket like he has done in one-day cricket. We’re very lucky to have him in all formats.”
Johnson agreed with Watson’s assessment. “I don’t think it (Starc dominating Tests) is far away,” he said. “I just think he needs to play consistent Test match cricket. I know what it was like when I first started — you’re trying to find your rhythm and trying to find your place. This has definitely given him a lot of confidence. He was criticised through that Test series last year. He has really stood up. I’m really proud of him.”
