After 'brainfade', Australia face 'Starc' reality

NEW DELHI: Australia's stress factor seems to be on the rise following Steve Smith's 'brainfade' in Bengaluru - literally.

NEW DELHI: In a massive blow to the remainder of the team's campaign in India, Mitchell Starc -arguably the best left-arm pacer in the world right now - has been ruled out with a stress fracture on his right foot and will take no further part in the series. Starc, who will fly back home immediately, is the second injury casualty for the visitors after Mitchell Marsh's shoulder forced him to opt out of the Ranchi and Dharamshala Tests.

The ramifications of Starc's pullout cannot be overstated, especially with the series at a critical juncture and tempers running high following Smith and Kohli's DRS showdown in the second Test.

“Not only is Starc the most experienced Australian pacer in these conditions, he inspires fear. He is one of the few bowlers around who can produce that unplayable delivery even when, as a batsman, you have done everything right,” former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar told TOI.

“Also, he is one of the most experienced when it comes to bowling in the subcontinent. He is deadly on wickets with variable bounce.”

India, naturally, will be elated. Since his return from injury in the middle of 2016, Starc played 11 Tests and claimed 57 wickets at an average of 24.8. Last year he bagged 24 wickets in the three-Test series in Sri Lanka alone - nearly twice the wickets captured by all other pacers combined in the series.

“He has moulded his skills remarkably well for the subcontinent and improved his reverse swing abilities with the old ball,” former India pacer and junior selection committee chairman Venkatesh Prasad told TOI.

“India are wary of pacers like Starc because of their IPL experience too. In the IPL, the interaction level between senior players is high, and Starc's past stint in RCB would have given him an insight into Kohli's methods.”

Injuries and Starc have been unhappy bedfellows throughout (see box). The 27-year-old had apparently been complaining of a sore foot during the Bengaluru Test. The stress fracture seems to be an old injury, having cropped up in Nov 2015 during the day/night Adelaide Test against New Zealand too. In September last year, Starc collided with training equipment and needed 36 stitches on his left leg. The bowler, incidentally, has pulled out of the upcoming IPL.

Australia are yet to name a replacement, with the names of two other injury-prone pacers - Pat Cummins and James Pattinson - doing the rounds. Jackson Bird, already in the squad, may take Starc's place in Ranchi.

Starc's lower-order batting too is a big plus, like he showed in Pune, and former India opener and cricket analyst Aakash Chopra feels the Aussies will find it hard to recover from his absence. “It's simple. Starc can take the pitch completely out of the equation. He is the only bowler in the world right now who can consistently crack it up to 150kmph, and he finds swing. Factor in the left-arm angle and India will be happy to see him out injured. Australia don't have a ready replacement for him,” Chopra said.

With 'Cheatgate' having already unnerved the Aussies, it seems luck too has deserted them for now.