Mitchell Starc experienced a nightmarish outing during Delhi Capitals' Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 clash against Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala. Despite his reputation as one of the premier fast bowlers of his generation, the veteran Australian was dismantled by the young batting duo of Priyansh Arya and Suryansh Shedge. Starc, who had previously been a vital asset for Delhi, including a match-winning three-wicket haul against Rajasthan—found himself on the wrong side of history as he recorded the second-worst figures of his entire T20 career.
Mitchell Starc bags unwanted record with expensive spell against PBKS
The onslaught began immediately when Starc was handed the new ball for the opening over of the match. Priyansh Arya showed no respect for the veteran's pedigree, thrashing him for 22 runs in a brutal first over. Following this expensive start, Starc was taken out of the attack for the remainder of the powerplay. He managed to find some semblance of control during his middle and death-over spells, conceding only 19 runs over his next two overs and even removing the dangerous Marcus Stoinis with the first ball of his final over.
However, the late-innings reprieve was short-lived as Suryansh Shedge unleashed a fresh wave of carnage. After Starc took the wicket of Stoinis, Shedge spoiled any hopes of a comeback by smashing a six off the hat-trick ball, followed by a boundary. The over concluded with a massive six over the mid-wicket region, leaving Starc with final figures of 2/57 at an economy rate of 14.25.
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Starc bowls his most expensive spell in IPL history
This performance marked the most expensive spell of Starc’s IPL career. It stands second only to his performance in the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup final in Dubai, where he conceded 60 runs against New Zealand.
PBKS ended up posting a big total of 210/5, thanks to Shreyas Iyer's 36-ball 59 and Priyansh Arya's 33-ball 56.