The return of pacey left-arm swing bowler Mitchell Starc from an injury lay-off will be a great boost to
Mitchell Starc upon arrival in Guyana
Australia’s chances in the Tri- Nation series which also involves the West Indies and South Africa.
The 30-year old Starc is seen to be a threat even in conditions that are not expected to be conducive to fast bowling according to Australia’s interim coach
Justin Langer.
In speaking to Guyana Times Sport Langer said, “He is excited to be back for sure, it is more fun playing than being in the rehab centre; his is a fantastic bowler and has grown in confidence over the last couple of years, he is a great athlete.”
The fast bowler has played 46 One Day Internationals (ODI) and took 90 wickets at average of 19.65 and a respectable economy rate of 4.85 runs per over.
With experience and skill certainly two attributes of Starc, Langer expects the bowler perform well in the coming months and more so in this series.
“The Australian cricket has a long campaign over the next 12 to 18 months and he is building steadily and hopefully has an impact on this series as well”, the coach explained.
The Australians will be in action on Sunday against the West Indians, while their final match in the Guyana leg will be against South Africa, before the series moves to St. Kitts and wraps up in Barbados.
Starc has not played international cricket since November, where he suffered an ankle injury that led to surgery and a lengthy recovery.
The number three ranked bowler on the International Cricket Council (ICC) ODI rankings, is expected to be create a stern examination during the course of the 10-match series.
The Tri-Nation series bowls off on Friday with hosts West Indies taking on the number three ranked South Africa in a day/night match at Providence. The entire series of 10 matches will be day/night fixtures, the first such instance in the Caribbean. Also, this is only the second time that a tri-nation series is being played in the Region following the 2013 Celkon Mobile Cup involving hosts West Indies, India and Sri Lanka.
