Mitchell Starc’s nightmare at Lord’s on Friday was a chilling reminder of the brutal onslaught he endured at the hands of Rohit Sharma during the T20 World Cup earlier this year. In the fourth ODI between Australia and England, Starc was subjected to a relentless assault by Liam Livingstone, who smashed 29 runs off his over, equaling the costliest over by an Australian bowler in ODIs.
Starc’s torment began in the final over of England’s innings, with the home team needing 15 runs to win. Livingstone, who had already struck a blistering 67 off 27 balls, took aim at the Australian left-arm pacer, hitting four sixes in a row. The over, which read 6, 0, 6, 6, 6, 4, brought back haunting memories of Rohit’s sensational knock in the T20 World Cup match.
In that match, Rohit played arguably the best innings of the tournament, smashing eight sixes and seven fours in his 41-ball 92. The highlight of his innings was the third over bowled by Starc, in which the Indian captain plundered four sixes and a four off the pacer, making it a 29-run over.
Starc’s struggles against Livingstone and Rohit have exposed a vulnerability in his bowling that opposition batters are eager to exploit. The Australian pacer, who has been one of the most feared bowlers in world cricket, is now facing questions about his ability to handle the pressure in high-stakes matches.
After the match, Starc admitted that he had bowled five bad balls and that Livingstone had punished him for them. “I’ve played a lot against him. He had a good tournament, especially in our game. I think he targeted that wind in St. Lucia as well. If you look at the runs from each end, one end went for a lot more than the other. I bowled from that end,” Starc said on the LiSTNR Sport podcast.
Starc’s struggles are a concern for Australia, who are looking to regain their dominance in ODI cricket. The team has lost two of the first four matches in the series against England, and Starc’s inability to contain the opposition’s batters is a major factor.
