‘Bowlers Are Allowed To Bowl Good Balls’: Starc Adament After Record 17 Wickets On Day 1 – News18
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Mitchell Starc said credit must be given to both sets of bowlers of India and Australia after a record 17 wickets fell on day one.
IND vs AUS: Mitchell Starc picked up two wickets on the opening day of the first Test (AP)
Mitchell Starc dimissed both Indian openers as Australia bowled out the visitors for 150 on the first day of the opening Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at the Optus Stadium in Perth. In reply, the home team reached 67/7, still trailing by 83 and in danger of falling short of their lowest-ever total against India — 83, recorded in 1981.
In fact, 17 wickets fell on the opening day, a record on Australian soil Starc doesn’t believe that batting conditions were becoming harder across the country.
“How many ways can you skin a cat? Bowlers are allowed to bowl good balls,” Starc was quoted as saying during the press conference at the end of the day’s play.
“When there’s a lot of runs, it’s like, ‘Oh, the bowlers bowled badly. When there’s wickets, the wickets are tough’. (But) you are allowed to bowl good balls and maybe credit should go to both teams and bowlers.
“Sure, there’s plenty in the wicket when you put it in the right area and it was hard work for batting, but as I said, you’re allowed to bowl good balls and there were plenty of those today.”
Starc though believes batting will get easier in the second innings and batters just need to survive the new Kookaburra ball.
“I think there was a fair bit of good bowling today. Obviously there was enough in the wicket and it probably felt like it was a hardball wicket,” Starc said.
“When the ball started to get a little bit softer towards the back end of that Indian innings, it probably didn’t do as much. (There was) still enough there, but it didn’t do as much as the brand new hardball.
“So I guess that’s something for teams to take in the second innings.
“If you can get through the testing period, it does get slightly easier. That being said, the outfield is quite slow, so that probably made runs a bit hard to come by. That’s probably the slowest outfield we’ve seen over in the west for a long time.”
(With inputs from Agencies)
