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Cricket World Player of the Week - Mitchell Starc

©CWM

Australian speedster Mitchell Starc may not have been able to produce anything extraordinary in the Test series against India, but he has had the white ball on a string in the ODIs.

Mitchell Starc has already taken 8 wickets from just the first two ODIs at a sensational average of 12.75. As the three-match series stands in the balance at 1-1, the lanky pacer will hold the key to the outcome of the India-Australia decider.

The pacer claimed his ninth five-wicket haul in the 2nd ODI, drawing level with Shahid Afridi and Brett Lee in the 50-over format. Former Pakistan pacer Waqar Younis’ record of 13 fifers isn’t far away either if Starc carries on with his form.

Among bowlers with a minimum of 100 wickets in ODIs, Starc has the best bowling strike-rate of 25.60. Overall, Starc also has the fifth-best strike-rate for ODI bowlers among those having bowled a minimum of 1000 deliveries. Nepal’s Sandeep Lamichhane (22.40), Australia’s Ryan Harris (23.40), Oman’s Bilal Khan (24.30) and New Zealand’s Corey Anderson (24.70) make the top four.

Starc is also fourth in the list of most four-wicket hauls or more in ODIs (21). Only Waqar Younis (27), Muttiah Muralitharan (25), Brett Lee (23) and Wasim Akram (23) are ahead of the Aussie speedster.

Starc became the fastest pacer and the second-fastest after Rashid Khan to bag 100 wickets in ODIs in August 2016. He reached the milestone in just 52 matches against Sri Lanka in Colombo.

In September 2022, Starc became the fastest bowler to 200 wickets in ODIs, overtaking Pakistan’s Saqlain Mushtaq’s 23-year-old record in 104 matches, and is still going as strong as ever.