Adelaide :
Australia mainstay seamer Mitchell Starc outlined his simple and “nothing special” plan of dismissing India opener and centurion of the last game, Yashasvi Jaiswal in the second Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Adelaide. Starc reigned supreme on the opening day of the pink-ball Test, with his inswinging deliveries landing on the mark. As fans settled into their seats to witness the enticing affair, Starc sent Jaiswal back to the dressing room on the very first ball, before some could even lift their eyes up. A delicious pitched-up inswing delivery left Jaiswal undone in front of the stumps as he tried to go across instead of playing it with a straight bat.
The crowd erupted in a loud roar to celebrate Starc’s success, but it was only the beginning of a breathtaking display as the seasoned pacer had just tasted blood.
Starc got his revenge on Jaiswal after being at the receiving end from the young southpaw about his deliveries being “too slow” in Perth.
When asked about his plans on getting Jaiswal, Starc has a simple reply, as quoted from the ICC, “At the stumps, hit the pads. That’s it. Nothing special.”
“That’s been my role for a while: to attack the stumps and try and make early inroads. Pleased to sneak one past today. We know how important it is to make early inroads into this batting lineup. It’s always a nice way to start. It is a big Test match, it’s a big series,” he added.
Starc returned with figures of 6/48 as Australia had India on the ropes after bowling them out on 180. But the left-armer’s wait for his magical spell to end by youngster Nitish Kumar Reddy’s onslaught.
With the Australian pacers imposing their dominance, Nitish found the formula to lead a counter-attack with his cut-throat strokeplay. He hammered 42 before miscuing a shot in Starc’s over, handing him his sixth wicket of the innings.
“Yeah, the game’s changed. I guess that’s partly the T20 era. Some of these guys come up through IPL cricket, and there’s no fear. There’s an expectation to be good from the get-go. They’re quality players from the time they get into international cricket, no matter what their age is,” Starc said.
“We’ve obviously seen a little bit of Jaiswal before in the last week, had a fantastic innings, and then some of the shots (Nitish) Kumar Reddy played today. They were some special shots. Whether it’s T20 cricket or coming into Test cricket or no-fear cricket from the next generation, I’ve been around long enough to see it change a little bit,” he added.
In response to India’s 180, Australia lost Usman Khawaja early, but Nathan McSweeney and Marnus Labuschagne left India staggered with their unbeaten 62-run partnership, propelling Australia to 86/1.
While praising the duo for their splendid display with the bat, Starc is aware of the position that Australia currently hold.
“It’s a good way to finish the day. A good day all out. But inarguably, the hardest time to bat is that third session with the brand-new pink ball. So, to finish the day one down, particularly from Marnus and McSweeney, to fight through sustained pressure from a quality bowling attack and to come out the other end,” he said.
“We have a chance to go on tomorrow, it was fantastic from them. Obviously, a fair bit of outside noise. Very pleased for them,” he remarked.
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