In a series of extraordinary events, star Australia pacer Mitchell Starc has dropped a record spell in the ongoing second Test against Bangladesh on August 22, Saturday at the Great Barrier Reef Arena in South Mackay. The left-arm pacer has clinched five wickets in just 22 deliveries against Bangladesh.
Mitchell Starc's fiery spell vs Bangladesh
After a crushing nine-wicket defeat in the opening Test in Darwin Australia were desperate to make an early statement in the second game. Mitchell Starc did the job perfectly, striking with the opening ball of the game. The left-arm pacer immediately put Bangladesh under pressure and gave the visitors little chance to get the groove or rebuild their innings.
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Bangladesh's batting order had no answers to Starc's fiery opening spell, slipping 12/5 after Litton Das became the Australian's fifth victim. Interestingly, all of the first five scalps belonged to Starc as he tore through the visitors' top order.
Starc controlled the tempo from the first ball, removing Shadman Islam for a duck to hand Australia the perfect start. Tanzid Hasan, fresh from a hundred in Bangladesh's historic win in Darwin, was restricted from repeating the heroics and was dismissed on a duck. Skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto endured the same fate, becoming Starc's third wicket as Bangladesh found themselves in deep trouble at 4/3 after only eight balls.
Mominul Haque offered Bangladesh a brief period of resistance and contributed the bulk of their runs during the early collapse, but he too eventually fell to Starc as the pacer picked up his fourth wicket. Litton Das followed soon without troubling the scores, handing Starc a remarkable five-wicket haul. Four of the five Bangladesh batters dismissed by the veteran pacer failed to score a single run.
Micthell Starc beats Dale Steyn
Starc's magical spell helped him achieve another milestone in the longest format. His fifth wicket took him to 440 Test wickets, letting him overtake South Africa's legendary pacer, Dale Steyn, who finished his career with 439 scalps. With this, Starc climbed to the 10th place on the all-time list of highest wicket-takers in Test cricket.