IPL 2024: Hopefully, I Can Fill Pat Cummins’ Shoes At KKR – Mitchell Starc After Rs 24.75 Crore Pay-Cheque
New Delhi: Mithell Starc hoped to fill the shoes of Pat Cummins after the Australian pacer became the costliest ever in IPL history during the auction on Tuesday in Dubai. Two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders broke their bank as they ended up paying Rs 24.75 crore to the ODI World Cup 2023-winning pacer. Cummins was a part of KKR from 2020 to 2022.
I wasn’t sure where I would end up, but I am thrilled to be a part of KKR. It’s a team that Pat was at, so hopefully, I can fill his boots there and be very successful,” Starc told Jio Cinema from Australia. The left-arm quick said he never dreamt of getting such a value.
“Nothing I could have dreamt of. Obviously, a few teams were looking to bolster their pace attacks and there are a plethora of brilliant skill sets and names on their auction list, with Pat (Cummins) being one of them, and going to Dan’s (Daniel Vettori) team in Hyderabad.”
Starc’s last IPL stint was for Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2015 and since then the Sydney man has skipped the league for a variety of reasons ranging from concentrating on Test cricket to spending time with his family.
But once the left-arm pacer decided to participate in the auction, he fitted perfectly into the KKR’s plans of finding a fast bowler with pedigree ahead of IPL 2024. KKR had released Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, Lockie Ferguson and Shardul Thakur ahead of the auction, making it mandatory for them to draft in a lead pacer.
Welcome back, record-breaker! pic.twitter.com/KwSZui8GBj
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) December 19, 2023
“I have prioritized international cricket and wanted to prioritize Test cricket as well, playing as much and as well as I could for Australia. That was my thought process leading up to the last number of years,” he said.
“Coming into the back end of this year and heading into next year, it’s a lot quieter on the international scene for the Australian group. It’s a great chance to get involved in the IPL. Obviously, there’s a T20 World Cup coming up next year and there’s a good chance to play some really competitive T20 cricket in the best T20 league,” he added.
Starc is a value purchase too despite that hefty price tag around his neck. At 33, he remains a massive threat in white ball formats and can still touch late 140 clicks with ease. His overall economy of 7.63 in T20Is across 58 matches is quite respectable, and those yorkers and in-dippers are as lethal as ever.
For Starc, the nature of the pitch is hardly a concern as his length is fuller. Hence, the KKR will place high hopes on him to take them back to winning ways after two seasons of mediocrity when they finished seventh on the table.