Why Starc deserved iconic spell; ‘heads should roll’ over ‘abysmal’ Windies flop — Talking Points

Australia capped off a series whitewash in the West Indies with a crushing display to knock over the hosts for a mere 27 to win the third Test in Jamaica by 176 runs.

Mitchell Starc ran riot with the hooping pink Duke ball in his 100th Test with a career-best six-wicket haul, while Scott Boland capped off the demolition job with a hat-trick, becoming just the tenth Australian to achieve the feat in a men’s Test.

Once again, the team’s world-class fast bowlers proved too good for the West Indies’ struggling batting line-up after Australia’s own batters left the door ajar.

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The Australians outperformed their opponents with the willow, but selectors and fans no doubt would have liked to have witnessed more runs heading into the Ashes despite the bowler-friendly conditions in the Caribbean.

Australia’s openers in particular were the glaring problem, and it is set to be a fascinating few months as the selectors try to land on a suitable combination to take on England in November’s series opener in Perth.

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‘DOESN’T GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS’: STARC’S MARVELLOUS MILESTONE

Mitchell Starc’s 100th Test could hardly have gone any better.

The tall left-armer, who became just the second Australian fast bowler after Glenn McGrath to play 100 Test matches, picked up career-best figures of 6-9 in the second innings as the West Indies were knocked over for just 27.

Starc needed just 15 balls to claim his five-wicket haul, the fewest ever, including three wickets in the opening over.

No one has taken more wickets than Starc in the first over of a Test innings, and shortly after his opening burst, Starc reached the remarkable 400-wicket milestone.

Again, like McGrath, he is only the second Australian fast bowler to reach that landmark, joining spinners Shane Warne and Nathan Lyon on the illustrious list.

There was no limping those milestones either from the 35-year-old; he was at his destructive best.

Starc’s late inswingers to the right-handers at high pace left Brad Haddin just about salivating in the commentary box as the former Australian gloveman declared: “It doesn’t get any better than this, Mitchell Starc, pink ball, the wicket offering something,”

Haddin went on to say that those in Jamaica were privileged enough to have “witnessed greatness”.

“It was something special. When we walked down here for the presentation there was a buzz around Mitchell Starc,” Haddin said.

“A lot of emotion coming for his 100th Test match and closing in on that exclusive club of 400 Test wickets, but what he delivered today (was extraordinary).

“You just have to understand how popular he is in this team. When he walked off, he didn’t want to be the centre of attention. He wanted his teammates to walk off in front of him, but this was his moment.

“He deserved that moment today. What he produced there, the crowd got to see something special, and we witnessed some greatness today.”

Starc himself has long been one to shy away from the spotlight, and he admitted that all the attention and adulation had been “uncomfortable” for him.

The New South Welshman has always prioritised playing Test cricket for Australia above all else despite his white-ball prowess.

He has forfeited many years of lucrative IPL contracts to ensure his body was right for Test duties, but Starc does not see that choice as a sacrifice.

“I guess I’ll reflect on a few things once I’m finished with the week, or I don’t know,” Starc said.

“Everything’s sort of sinking in at the moment. It’s been a fantastic week for us. Very humbling to play long enough to have a chance at a few different milestones.

“I can reflect on when I’m finished playing or have a bit of time off. At the moment, just enjoying another Test win.

He added: “I don’t know about sacrificing, I’ve made a lot of choices along the way.

“I said before that playing Test cricket, certainly took me a while to feel like I belonged or to be good enough to play for a long period of time. I was never going to let that opportunity slip and prioritise that.

“It’s been an uncomfortable week but certainly very humbling to hear some messages from people back home, some past Australian greats and the boys in the change room, and the staff have been fantastic. An uncomfortable week but a special week all the same and we had a good week as a team.”

‘HEADS SHOULD ROLL’: WINDIES’ BATTING NIGHTMARE

Speaking ahead of play on day three of the Kingston Test, West Indies fast bowler Alzarri Joseph was asked about the team’s batting throughout the series.

The speedster, who took a five-wicket haul during the second innings, tried to offer a diplomatic answer — but his frustration was apparent.

“In a team, if one half aren’t pulling their weight, then we have to do a bit more work,” Joseph replied.

“So far we’ve been doing the bulk of the work, but hopefully in this innings the batsmen come good.”

Later that afternoon, Joseph walked out to bat in the sixth over of the run chase with the West Indies reeling at 6-11. The hosts were eventually rolled for 27, the second-lowest team total in Test history, with Joseph finishing unbeaten on 4, the second-highest score of the innings.

It had become a common theme for this Caribbean team — the bowlers were excellent throughout the Frank Worrell Trophy campaign, but weren’t receiving any support from the batters.

And Monday’s embarrassing collapse at Sabina Park, on arguably the best batting surface of the series, was a jarring reminder of how far West Indies batting has fallen since the era of Brian Lara and Shivnarine Chanderpaul.

During the tea break, former West Indies all-rounder Carlos Brathwaite was asked to summarise the host side’s batting effort.

He rolled his eyes and shook his head,

“Abysmal comes to mind,” Brathwaite quipped.

“Unfair comes to mind, to think the fast bowlers have to bowl and bat as well.

“It’s a tough one to summarise.”

The West Indies entered the series with a new coach, a new captain and a rejuvenated batting line-up that included white-ball star Brandon King and wicketkeeper Shai Hope.

The Frank Worrell trophy was earmarked as the start of a new era for the West Indies — but now the team has more questions than answers.

“I really think a few heads should roll for this,” West Indies legend Carl Hooper told the ABC.

“They made some wholesale changes and got this result. To start with, reverse them. Return Andre Coley as red-ball coach.”

The West Indies passed 200 only once across the three-Test campaign, while King was the only player who mustered a half-century.

Australia boasts a world-class bowling attack, but West Indies captain Roston Chase acknowledged there were no excuses for the team’s underperforming batters.

“The bowlers kept us in the series all series long, and the batting never really showed up,” Roston Chase confessed during the post-match presentation.

“That’s just what we need to work on, we need to really take a deep look at ourselves as batters.

“We need to really have a look at our batting displays for this series and see where we can improve and how we can put 300-run totals on the board.

‘GOING TO BE A REAL BAT OFF’: OPENING BERTH AWAITS FOR ASHES

An old-fashioned bat-off is set to take place for a second-straight Australian summer after the opening position proved to be a poisoned chalice yet again.

In a series dominated by high-quality fast bowling, Usman Khawaja managed to score only 117 runs at an average of 19.50 in his six innings with a top score of 47, while Sam Konstas tallied just 50 runs at 8.33 with a highest score of 25.

It is grim reading for the Australian selectors as the opening spots have been a head-scratcher for several years.

Khawaja, at age 38, was dismissed lbw or bowled by right-arm quicks from around the wicket in four of his six knocks, while 19-year-old Konstas was troubled on either edge of his bat as his technical problems were exposed.

He too was trapped in front or bowled on four occasions, but he was also dropped several times in the slip cordon, edging deliveries outside off stump.

Konstas’ technical issues largely stemmed from a desire to get further across to off stump to better judge balls outside his eye line, but that only left him vulnerable to the delivery that darts back in towards the pegs.

The other big question mark in Australia’s top order coming into the series was Cameron Green batting at No. 3, but his returns late in the series indicate that selectors will persist with the West Australian at first drop.

In a series where no one made more than Brandon King’s 75 in the second Test in Grenada, Green strung together scores of 52, 46 and 42 to finish the series.

He no doubt would have loved to have kicked on in each of those innings, but what would have filled the selectors with confidence was the 26-year-old’s ability to fight through the tough periods against a moving new ball.

Green finished the series as the third-leading run-scorer with 184 at 30.66, behind only Travis Head (224 at 37.33) and Alex Carey (187 runs at 31.16).

It appears as if positions No. 3 to No. 7 in the Australian order are settled with Steve Smith, who made the highest score by an Australian in the series with his 71 in the second Test, a lock at No. 4 and the impressive returns of all-rounder Beau Webster.

The Tasmanian scored 150 runs at 30, but crucially made half-centuries when the team was in trouble during the first two Tests.

It is at the top of the order where the opportunity lies for those currently on the outer.

The likes of Marnus Labuschagne, Marcus Harris, Cameron Bancroft and Matt Renshaw will all be queuing up for a recall.

But the list of potentials is long with last season’s Sheffield Shield leading run-scorer Jake Weatherald and Victorian youngster Campbell Kellaway opening the batting for Australia A against Sri Lanka A in Darwin at present.

The discarded Nathan McSweeney may be a candidate for a Test recall as he was unbeaten on 94 batting at No. 3 for Australia A at the end of day two of the four-day clash.

With so many options, whoever starts the season with a flurry, and that could be Konstas, is likely to face the new Kookaburra in Perth.

However, former Australian Test batter Greg Blewett believes there will only be one spot on the line.

“That is a concern moving forward,” Blewett said on ESPN’s Around the Wicket.

“Now, the coach, and a selector, Andrew McDonald, has basically I heard, guaranteed Usman the start of the Ashes regardless of how he went in this series.

“We should see Usman at the start there. Now, Sam Konstas is a different story.

“There is still a lot of first-class cricket before that Ashes Test match.

“So, it’s going to be a real bat off.

“There are four Shield games. There’ll be Australia A games as well.

“So, there are quite a few first-class games leading into that first Ashes Test match.

“It’s not all about this Tour but a few of those top-order players, like Cameron Green, would have liked to have taken their chance a little bit better than what they have.”

BOLAND RESIGNED TO TEST FATE AFTER HAT-TRICK HEROICS

Scott Boland will be remembered as one of Australia’s unluckiest Test cricketers.

The Victorian seamer has been nothing short of exceptional in the Test arena, taking 62 wickets at 16.53 since his remarkable debut at the MCG in 2021. No cricketer in the last century has more wickets at a lower average.

During the Frank Worrell Trophy series finale in Kingston, Boland ripped through the West Indies middle order in the first innings before taking a rare hat-trick on day three, becoming just the tenth Australian to achieve the feat in men’s Tests.

However, in all likelihood, he will get dropped for Australia’s next Test, the first match of the home Ashes campaign.

Despite his red-ball excellence, Boland still hasn’t done enough to move up the pecking order, with Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood forming one of the greatest pace attacks of the modern era.

In another generation — or if he was born in a different country — Boland could have played 80 Tests, but instead he’s spent the majority of his international career carrying drinks and bowling in the nets.

“He would have played so many more Test matches in another team, but every time he comes in, he’s on the money,” Starc said of Boland.

“He’s never far from the perfect length as soon as he comes in. He’s preparing all the time to play. This week he got his opportunity and showed what a wonderful Test bowler he is.”

Captain Cummins continued: “He’s spent a lot of time running drinks in the past year or two when the other three guys are fit, but we know he’s quality when he does come in.”

Moving forward, the only way Boland can squeeze into Australia’s starting XI is through injury, workload management or another conditions-based selection, with national selectors dropping veteran spinner Nathan Lyon to accommodate another seamer’s inclusion for the Jamaican contest.

However, the four-man pace attack in Kingston appears to have been a one-off.

“Never say never, but it’s pretty unlikely we’d go with the four (quicks) again,” Cummins told reporters after the match.

Boland will almost certainly be called upon at some stage during next summer’s Ashes campaign, particularly considering his recent red-ball feats in Melbourne and Sydney, but having recently celebrated his 36th birthday, he may only get to enjoy a few more appearances in the baggy green before he hangs up the boots.

“It’s cool to play with three of the best fast bowlers that Australia’s ever had, I’ve been pretty lucky there,” Boland told reporters at stumps on day two.

“I’d like to play as many games as I could, especially with those other three guys.

“I’ve been preparing to play, even though I’m probably not going to play, my preparation hasn’t changed.

“I’m trying to give myself the best opportunity that if something happens morning of the game or whatever, that I’m ready to go.

“I didn’t really find out until late but I’m always preparing to play, so if something does pop up, then I’m ready to go.”