Updated 13 June 2025 at 22:01 IST
WTC 2025 Final - Sanjay Bangar Decodes Australia Star Mitchell Starc’s Composed Innings Against South Africa: 'Created Mental Dents In Proteas Setup'
Mitchell Starc played an unbeaten 58-run knock from 136 balls during Australia's second innings in the WTC 2025 Final against South Africa.
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Sanjay Bangar opens up on Mitchell Starc's knock against South Africa | Image:
AP and ANI
WTC 2025 Final: This time, not with the ball, but Australian cricketer Mitchell Starc shone with the bat. Starc played an unbeaten 58-run knock from 136 balls, which gave a breather to the Aussie camp after losing quick wickets in their second inning against South Africa in the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025, at the iconic Lord's in London.
The 59-run partnership from Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood was very crucial for the Aussies on Day 3 of the crucial fixture. It was a recovery knock from Starc, helping Australia climb to 207 in the second inning.
With the help of Alex Carey (43 runs from 50 balls) and Mitchell Starc (58 runs from 136 balls), Australia took a 281-run lead over South Africa in the Final clash of the WTC 2023-2025.
Aiden Markram and Ryan Rickelton opened for South Africa, aiming to chase down the 282-run target. At the start of their second inning, Proteas batters fell prey to Mitchell Starc. The Aussie pacer dismissed Ryan Rickelton (6 runs from 8 balls) and Wiaan Mulder (27 runs from 50 balls).
During the Tea break on Day 3, Proteas stood at 94/2 with Aiden Markram and Temba Bavuma unbeaten on the crease.
The Proteas need to make 188 runs to win against Australia and win the prestigious WTC mace.
Sanjay Bangar Reflects On Mitchell Starc's Knock Against The Proteas In WTC 2025 Final
While speaking on Star Sports, former India cricketer Sanjay Bangar decoded Mitchell Starc's knock against South Africa, saying that the Aussie pacer was very organized while batting.
He added that Starc's solid knock forced South Africa to bowl and stay on the crease for a longer period. Bangar further believed that the Aussie speedster's knock would put mental dents in the Proteas' setup.
“Starc has a very organized technique... The impact of this innings on South Africa’s bowlers was immense—it expended a lot of mental energy. Given that even Australia may not have expected such resistance from their final two batters, keeping South Africa longer on the field has certainly created mental dents in their setup,” Bangar said.
Mitchell Starc's Numbers In Test Cricket
Mitchell Starc made his Test debut in 2011 against New Zealand. Following that, he has picked up 382 wickets at an economy rate of 3.40 in 96 long-format matches and 184 innings.
The 35-year-old also has stunning numbers with the bat. Starc scored 2217 runs from 96 Test matches and 139 innings at a strike rate of 60.09.
Published 13 June 2025 at 22:00 IST