Although Australia sealed the ODI series 2-0 with their 51-run victory in Sydney on Sunday, Mitchell Starc has been their only weak link in their otherwise dominating performance in the on-going series against India, who has looked nowhere near his best, ending with the match figures of 0/82 and 1/65 in the two ODIs. This also becomes a major cause of concern as the four-match Test series is around the corner and such a dismal form of Starc will increase the confidence of India winning the series again.
However, Australia captain Aaron Finch has backed under-fire paceman to rebound and stated that there would be discussions about Starc’s form ahead of Wednesday’s dead rubber in Canberra but he was not worried about the 30-year-old’s form.
“I think he’s going OK. He hasn’t been at his very best and you have to understand that his standards are a lot higher than what you expect from most other people because of how dominant he’s been the last eight, nine years -- especially in the white-ball formats,” the limited-overs skipper told reporters on Tuesday as quoted by Hindustan Times.
“There will be some conversations had today about what we can do slightly different, whether it’s a tactical thing, when we’re using him through the innings. But there’s definitely no panic stations from my point of view.”
David Warner suffered a groin injury while fielding in the second ODI against India and will not be available for the limited-overs series. Finch added that losing opening partner Warner is a blow for Australia, and a replacement had yet to be determined.
“He’s an all-time great in one-day, T20 cricket. Any team that he’s not a part of is going to be slightly weaker. But we’ve got guys that can step up and really contribute in that role as well,” he added.
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