IPL 2024 was a mixed bag for Mitchell Starc. He was the most expensive pick ever at an IPL auction - going for INR 24.75 crore - but he also had a tough time with the ball. In an edition that has seen an unprecedented high scoring rate, Starc had just seven wickets and an economy rate of 11.78 in his first eight outings, conceding more than 50 on three occasions.
On Friday, he bounced back with 4 for 33 in Kolkata Knight Riders' 24-run win over Mumbai Indians and said the Impact Player rule had played a part in bowlers' inflated figures this season.
Starc told the press conference:
"The Impact Player rule changes things a fair bit. Everyone gets to bat a lot deeper having a batting and a bowling XI. There's a lot made of that rule throughout the tournament and there's been a lot of high scores, which is the nature of the wickets and the grounds we play on here. When you have batters and batting allrounders come in at Nos. 8 or 9, it's a long batting line-up.”
Starc began his spell against MI with a full delivery that hit Ishan Kishan's front pad but slid down the leg-side. Kishan then hit him for a four and a six but Starc took revenge by flattening his leg stump. He then returned at the death, taking three wickets in the final over to finish with his best figures of the season.
Between the IPL and the T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA, there is only a week's gap. But Starc is not worried about the workload that awaits him.
Starc expects the T20 World Cup to be a more even contest between bat and ball, unlike the IPL where scores in excess of 200 were commonplace.