Cheteshwar Pujara has stated that the Indian batters need to work their way on the pitch and tire Mitchell Starc in the starting overs of his spell, then they do not need to be worried about him being lethal for batters.
Australia’s left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc is in complete form in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. Starc has taken 14 wickets in three Tests, including his career-best of a six-wicket haul in the pink-ball Test. Cheteshwar Pujara, who is out-of-favour for India, has stated that the Indian batters need to tire him out. Pujara believes that Starc will not be able to perform well with the old ball so far.
“He has taken most of his wickets in his first five overs, his first spell. We need to bat well in the first five overs and make him bowl the second and third spells because he gets tired,” Pujara said on Star Sports. “When Mitchell Starc was bowling to Bumrah and Akash Deep with the old ball, he wasn’t that effective. So, play the new ball properly,” he said.
Pujara said that the Indian team did not look at Starc as a threat during the last time they toured Australia. On top of that, the batters looked at him as someone who would be a weak point and score quickly.
“He has been their best bowler thus far in this series. He has improved his bowling a lot in the last one to one-and-a-half years. If I talk about my personal experience, when he used to bowl in the last two series, we felt we could get runs. However, now it seems like when he comes to bowl, he will pick up wickets,” the 36-year-old added.
Starc has played 7 Tests at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), and has taken 25 wickets at an average of 30.16. He took four wickets during his last appearance against India, where the tourists won by 8 wickets.
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