The television cameras may not have captured it fully, but Mitchell Starc’s outstanding contribution to Kolkata Knight Riders’ Indian Premier League (IPL) final at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium on Tuesday night was not just his bowling prowess but sheer physical exertion.
Unusually for a fast bowler, Starc showed exceptional commitment to the team’s cause and frequently ran from one end to the other without hesitating to marshal the long-on position. Clearly, the Knight Riders think-tank wanted a tall fielder at that key position and for most of Sunrisers Hyderabad’s innings, Starc was deployed at that required fielding position. He was perfectly suited for the role assigned.
On the bowling front, not every KKR match saw Starc bowl the first over for the team — he opened the attack in eight of the 13 matches he played. Skipper Shreyas Iyer’s decision on Tuesday was a strategic one – he believed the tall Australian was the ideal candidate to attack Travis Head, who has emerged as the season’s most devastating opener. The result was quick, swift and quick — just two balls and a head clean bowled in the first over — sending cheers into the Knight Riders’ dugout. It was like a famous heavyweight bout where the opponent is knocked out in the first round.
It was a super fast delivery that was pitched up and moved late. Head, looking to drive, moved in late. The timing of such a delivery could not be more perfect. Throughout his four overs, Starc bowled fast and full rather than short and wide. “Travis Headey likes to score quickly and be aggressive and Mitchell Starc is a really aggressive bowler. Sometimes, there will be only one winner and we saw a winner tonight. But many times, Travis has been at the top this season. Bowling,” Simon Helmot, Sunrisers The assistant coach said, explaining the big match between the two Australian teams.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz felt that Starc was in a different zone in this match. “He knows how to manage big games,” the KKR and Afghanistan opener said after his side beat SRH by eight wickets. “Everybody saw that, you know, the way he bowled today, he was unbelievable. I mean, he’s one of the best. He’s got a lot of experience and yeah, I saw him completely different from other games. He was very good. .”
Stark was truly fired up, with commentators constantly commenting that he was breathing fire. In his second over, he could have dismissed Rahul Tripathi (on 14), but Shreyas and Starc refused to review the lbw appeal. Tripathi was the highest run-scorer for Sunrisers in the match with 55 runs. However, in his third over, Starc removed Nitish Reddy and Shahbaz Ahmed in consecutive deliveries and bowled perfect pace. At that point, the match looked over, with Sunrisers 39 for four in five overs. Starc returned to bowl in the 19th over and completed his quota with three wickets for 34 runs, earning him the Man of the Match award.
“We know how important the powerplay is. These two sides (KKR and SRH) have dominated the powerplay with the bat. We wanted to take early wickets and get into their middle order. Way Head and Abhishek (Sharma) have been playing throughout the tournament, they like width. And their hands free, we just tried to swing the ball and give them width, the ball stump to stump,” Starc later explained the strategy for the SRH openers.
He was humbled to say he was lucky, with a prized scalp. “Lucky I guess. (It) was good to see his back early, not always. We’ve been playing against each other recently,” he added. Well done, we know how their (Head and Abhishek’s) opening partnership has matched us in the Powerplay, both got out cheaply, which is really pleasing.”
Stark’s masterful display is also a testament to the meticulous planning and strategic thinking of Knight Riders’ backroom staff during the auction. His acquisition followed an intense bidding war with Gujarat Titans on the day of the auction, highlighting the lengths to which both franchises were willing to go to secure his services. “In the end, maybe we outbid the Gujarat Titans with one more offer, while they fell short by one bid,” Venky Mysore, the franchise CEO, had told this website, suggesting that they might have backed out had GT continued.
Another bid and Starc would have bowled for home team Gujarat Titans in Qualifier One at Motera. On Tuesday night, the Gujarat Titans manager must have wondered why they didn’t go the extra mile and bid that crucial extra.
Starc justified the franchise’s faith with his hard work and honesty. This tireless effort underscored his value to the team, which capped the season
