London [UK]: Australian pace spearhead Mitchell Starc etched his name in cricketing history on Wednesday by becoming the bowler with the most wickets in ICC tournament finals, surpassing India’s veteran pacer Mohammed Shami.
Starc achieved this milestone during Australia’s ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final against South Africa at Lord’s. After Australia was dismissed for a modest 212 in their first innings, Starc struck early in South Africa’s reply, uprooting Aiden Markram for a duck with a trademark inswinger. By stumps on Day 1, Starc had figures of 2/10 in seven overs, dismantling South Africa’s top order.
With these two wickets, Starc now has 11 wickets from five ICC finals at an average of 26.63 and an economy rate of 5.17. His best figures in an ICC final remain 3/55 against India in the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup final in Ahmedabad — a match Australia famously won.
Shami, on the other hand, has 10 wickets from four ICC finals at an average of 38.90 and an economy rate of 3.95, with his best performance being 4/76 in the WTC Final 2021 against New Zealand.
Additionally, Starc has moved past India’s legendary pacer Zaheer Khan to become the joint second-highest wicket-taker in ICC knockout matches overall. Starc now boasts 22 wickets in such matches at an average of 24.31, with best figures of 3/34. At the top of this elite list sits Sri Lankan spin wizard Muttiah Muralitharan with 23 wickets at 23.39, including best figures of 4/31.
As for the WTC final clash, Australia, after opting to bat, struggled to 67/4 by lunch. A 79-run partnership between Steve Smith (66) and Beau Webster (72) stabilized the innings. Contributions from Alex Carey (23) pushed the total to 212, with South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada (5/51) and Marco Jansen (3/49) leading the bowling effort.
South Africa had an even worse outing with the bat, ending Day 1 at 43/4, trailing Australia by 169 runs. Starc led the bowling attack with two wickets, while Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood chipped in with one each.
The match remains evenly poised with South Africa in deep trouble as the WTC final progresses.