Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc, famous for his stormy pace, sharp swing and deadly yorker in the history of world cricket, has written a golden chapter on the scene of Test cricket which will be remembered for centuries. On the third day of the second Test match being played against South Africa at Gkebarha (Port Elizabeth), Starc completed his 450 wickets in Test cricket by taking the valuable wicket of Proteas batsman Wiaan Mulder. With this historic success, Mitchell Starc has become the first left-arm bowler in the world to take 450 or more wickets in the 147 years of Test cricket history. Before him, veteran left arm fast bowlers like Wasim Akram and Chaminda Vaas had also stopped before this figure. With this, Starc has become the fourth most successful bowler for Australia to cross the magical figure of 450 in Test cricket, making his name forever immortalized in the category of cricket's greatest masters.
This historic moment came on the last ball of the 50th over of South Africa's first innings on the third day of the Gkebarha Test match. Mitchell Starc, at the bowling end, varied his pace and bowled a very sharp short-pitched ball which came straight towards the body of 28-year-old Wiaan Mulder with unexpected bounce. Mulder looked completely uncomfortable with the extra pace and line of the ball and sat with the bat in an attempt to protect his body. The ball touched the outer edge of his glove, hit his helmet and ended up in the safe hands of fielder Matt Renshaw, posted at first slip. Despite Australia's strong appeal, the on-field umpire declared it not-out. Without wasting any time, captain Pat Cummins and Starc immediately resorted to DRS. TV replays and ultra-edge technology clearly showed that the ball had clearly touched the batsman's glove. The third umpire changed the on-field decision and declared Mulder out and with this the entire Australian camp celebrated Starc's great achievement.
Reaching the magical milestone of 450 Test wickets, Mitchell Starc has become part of the most exclusive and elite club in Australian cricket history. So far, only four bowlers have been able to reach this milestone in Australia's rich Test history. The late leg spin wizard Shane Warne tops this prestigious all-time list with 708 wickets, while legendary fast bowler Glenn McGrath is at the second position with 563 Test wickets. Whereas in the current era, veteran off-spinner Nathan Lyon is at the third position with more than 530 wickets and now after completing 450 wickets, Mitchell Starc has firmly established himself at the fourth position. Starc had already broken Wasim Akram's record of 414 Test wickets among left-arm fast bowlers, and now by crossing the historic figure of 450, he has set a record which will prove to be a Himalayan challenge for any young left-arm bowler.
The second biggest attraction of Australian bowling in this match was fast bowler Scott Boland, who once again wreaked havoc with his precise line and length and pushed the South African batsmen on the backfoot. In this match, Boland, who was included in the playing eleven in place of Nathan Lyon, bowled such tight bowling with both the new ball and the old ball to which the South African top order had no answer. Boland broke the back of the Proteas team and took five wickets (Five-Wicket Haul) in his spell. He showed the way to the pavilion to openers Aiden Markram, Marques Ackerman, David Bedingham, Ryan Rickelton and finally Marco Jansen, who was proving to be dangerous. This explosive performance of Boland has once again sparked a serious debate among cricket experts whether he should be given a permanent place in the Australian Test XI.
At one time, in front of the fiery balls of Australian fast bowlers, South Africa's top order was scattered like a pack of cards and the team lost its 4 key wickets on the score of just 40 runs. With the series at stake, the host team was under immense pressure. In such critical and difficult times, South African captain Temba Bavuma led from the front. Bavuma not only held one end firmly but also displayed patience and skill in the midst of crisis and scored a brilliant century. At the other end, tall young all-rounder Marco Jansen displayed aggressive counter-attacking batting. Playing with a tremendous strike rate of 85, Jansen played a stormy innings of 85 runs in just 100 balls. The valuable partnership of 132 runs for the sixth wicket between the two batsmen brought South Africa out of deep trouble and made a strong comeback in the match. The hosts are now hoping to consolidate their lead in the second innings by crossing the 300-run mark so as to put pressure on the Australian batsmen.