Australian pacer Mitchell Starc reckons the game’s hectic schedule will eventually force him to retire from limited-overs formats to extend his red-ball career as Test cricket is “always first”.
The 32-year-old is one of six all-format players in the Australian side.
“Tests (are) always first… far above white-ball,” said Starc, whose 4/47 steered Australia to an unassailable 2-0 lead in the ODI series against England on Saturday.
Start is expected to be a vital cog in the team’s 2023 World Cup plans. He has also indicated a desire to play in the 2024 T20 World Cup, to be held in the West Indies and the USA. “I’ll decide on the rest as I go and where my body’s at and how I feel about it. “I’d love to, selection and form pending, continue playing Test cricket as long as I can,” he added.
The left-armer feels the packed schedule these days makes it “impossible” for players to play all three formats. “It’s certainly impossible at the moment to play every game as a three-format player. Not the way it’s scheduled these days.” To maintain his workload, Starc has skipped the lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL) since 2015.
“We’ve seen that over the last few years, sometimes there are two Australian teams playing at the same time in different continents in different formats. They see a break and put a series on.
“I think having those periods of time to rest may help me keep bowling at decent speeds for a period of time. I don’t think playing three formats is something I can (continue) for a long period of time moving forward now.” Australia are currently playing a three-match ODI series against England that began four days after the conclusion of the T20 World Cup.
Australia then host the West Indies for two Tests, followed by a series against South Africa.
The Pat Cummins-led side then heads to India for the four-Test Border-Gavaskar Trophy in February-March. The Ashes in England are scheduled from June 16 to July 31 while the 50-over World Cup will be held in India in October-November next year.
