Mitchell Starc wanted to get on with the cricket. In his 100th Test, played under Jamaican skies, the left-arm quick became only the eighth Australian to pass 400 wickets – yet said the build-up felt, in his own words, “uncomfortable”.
Facts first
• Australia beat West Indies inside three days in Kingston.
• Starc’s opening over of the fourth innings produced three wickets.
• Figures of 6 for 9 wrapped things up; the tourists bowled just nine overs under lights all match.
• Starc’s 400th wicket arrived when Mikyle Louis was pinned on the pad.
• The team song was sung, a video from family and friends was played, and a bottle of local rum was handed over.
A week of attention
Ahead of the Test Starc repeated a line he has used for years: “Get on with the cricket.” He prefers milestones to be noted later, quietly, not paraded round the ground. Even so, the shirts signed by team-mates and the video messages – plus a nod from his AFL club Greater Western Sydney – clearly meant something.
“It’s certainly been uncomfortable throughout the week,” he admitted afterwards. “I was happy just to have a win and sing the song. It’s certainly been a special week to play, to wear the baggy green. It’s been one I’ll cherish for a long time.”
The match itself
Day one and two were hard graft on a flat surface, wickets arriving in ones and twos. Day three was different. Australia, defending 203, expected to slow things down until dusk and let the pink ball hoop around. Instead Starc and Scott Boland sliced through the top order before the shadows even lengthened.
“[It’s] probably a win against the conditions in the fact that we only bowled ten [nine] overs under lights,” Starc said. “I think everyone today with the ball was pretty spot on. I don’t think anyone thought it was going to happen that quickly.”
Cummins’ view
Captain Pat Cummins was brief but clear. “He can tear a game open by himself really in the matter of a couple of overs. It feels like he can do it in any format, any time.” Few who watched that opening burst would disagree.
Analysis – why it clicked
Starc’s landmarks often arrive in clusters; when the rhythm is right, his late swing brings pads and stumps into play. With the pink ball he gains fractionally more movement, and on a surface offering even bounce the lbw is always in the game. West Indies, under pressure after conceding a lead, pushed out rather than forward. Three were bowled, two lbw, one caught behind – the template Starc has used since 2015.
The 400 club
The Australian list now reads: Warne, McGrath, Lyon, Lillee, Johnson, Cummins, Hazlewood, Starc. He is the quickest of the current attack to the mark, though Hazlewood and Cummins have lower bowling averages. The trio have 1,200 wickets between them, a reminder that even as Starc turns 36, they remain a formidable unit.
Looking ahead
Starc has spoken about playing through to the 2027 Ashes but will take it one tour at a time. His workload is managed carefully; nine overs with the new ball on day three is the kind of bargain Cricket Australia’s physios enjoy.
Imperfect finish
There was nearly a Hollywood touch – a wicket with the perfect inswinger, middle stump out of the ground. Instead Louis’ front pad intervened. No matter. The umpire’s finger went up, the crowd cheered politely and Starc accepted handshakes from close fielders. Later, kids had a knock about on the outfield while groundsmen switched off the floodlights that had barely been needed.
Not that Starc will dwell on it. Another Test starts in Port of Spain in four days’ time, and he would, if he had his way, keep talk of caps and tallies to a bare minimum. The cricket, after all, is what he came for.
