Mitchell Starc’s IPL stock has risen as a result of his performance in Australia’s recent games.
The big paceman was expected to earn around $3 million, but given the way things have gone in the West Indies, he could be courting even bigger offers.
The irony is that the majority of the Australians who accepted the money to compete in the 2021 tournament have not shown up for the series that is proving to be so lucrative for the big money.
Despite fielding an inexperienced side, the visitors thrashed the West Indies by 123 runs in the first ODI. With three new players: Wes Agar, Ben McDermott, and Josh Philippe, Alex Carey took over as captain in the absence of Aaron Finch, who was injured.
With his pinpoint bowling in the final over of the penultimate game of the T20 leg of the tour, Starc piqued the interest of a number of IPL franchises, and a five-wicket haul in Wednesday’s win will have boosted his prospects even further.
He is one of the best white ball bowlers in the world when the ball is swinging, his pace is up, and his lengths are perfect.
On his way to match figures of 5-48, Starc had Evin Lewis caught and bowled with the first ball of the innings and swung one through the gate of Jason Mohammed with the first ball of his second over.
Early wickets were taken by Josh Hazlewood and the pair had the home side reeling at 6-27 after eight overs. Hazlewood’s 3-11 should serve as a reminder of how much better and more important he has become with the white ball.
He will, however, have to queue behind Starc, who has been targeted by a number of franchises ahead of a major auction before the IPL’s 2022 edition.
Kolkata Knight Riders will pay Pat Cummins $3.16 million in the 2021 IPL, while Punjab will pay Jhye Richardson $2.5 million.
When asked about teammates who took the IPL money this year but begged out of the Australian tour, Starc said before the game that he would keep his thoughts to himself.
He’s been paid a lot of money to play in the past, but he hasn’t done so since 2015. He withdrew due to injury on occasion, but more recently he has chosen to use the time to rest and spend time with his wife.
The bowler was overjoyed to get his eighth five-wicket haul in an ODI, as well as the team’s overall performance despite the absence of many experienced players.
After the game, he said, “It was a special day because we had three debutants and a bloke captaining for the first time.” “I thought we did a fantastic job with the bat to get to 250; we had a couple of really good partnerships there, so the two older blokes with the ball had to get us off to a good start.”
Captain-in-waiting Carey put on a crucial 104-run partnership with Ashton Turner for the fifth wicket.
The ship was steadied by Carey’s 67 from 87 and Turner’s 48 from 45.
After Carey and Turner moved the total to 4-218 the side lost 5-34 in the final overs the Australians’ 252 runs appeared adequate but fell short of what would have been expected. The visitors’ top order was ripped apart by Starc and Hazlewood, erasing any fears about the collapse.
Carey’s fifth half-century will add to his growing reputation as a wicketkeeper batsman who is expected to take Tim Paine’s place when he retires from Test cricket.
Starc said, “He was pretty calm and collected today.” “He was fantastic with the bat, which probably helped him calm down and get into the game if he was nervous.
“He did a fantastic job today, and it was nice to get him a win in his first game as captain, especially with three new players.”