IPL 2024 - KKR's Mitchell Starc finally strikes, dismisses Aussie counterparts Mitchell Marsh and David Warner from DC

After returning to the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 after nine years, Mitchell Starc was purchased for a record sum of Rs 24.75 Crore at the auction by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). However, despite high expectations, he struggled to secure wickets in the initial matches. Going wicketless in the first two games, the pacer finally made his mark in IPL 2024 by dismissing Mitchell Marsh in the clash against Delhi Capitals (DC).

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Starc bowled it full and wide, enticing Marsh to free his arms and drive hard. However, Marsh ended up slicing the ball straight into the hands of Ramandeep Singh at backward point. This marked Starc's first wicket of the season, ending a 59-ball drought, as Mitchell Marsh departed for a duck.

Later in the game, Starc also sent back his fellow Aussie counterpart, David Warner. This time, he shortened the length, slowed the pace, and kept the ball outside off. Warner attempted to stab it on the off-side but ended up with a thick inside edge that shattered his middle stump. Warner walked back to the pavilion for 18 (13) [4s-2, 6s-1].

At the end of the Powerplay, the Delhi Capitals found themselves four wickets down, and their dug-out wore a desolate look as they posted 51 runs. Alongside Starc, Vaibhav Arora also claimed two wickets.

In the earlier clash at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam, KKR narrowly missed matching or breaking the 277-run mark as they settled for a total of 272 runs. The carnage began with Sunil Narine (85 off 39), followed by debutant Angkrish Raghuvanshi (54 off 27), Andre Russell (41 off 19), and Rinku Singh (26 off 8). 

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For DC, Anrich Nortje picked three wickets, and Ishant Sharma took 2 in the final over, while Khaleel Ahmed and Mitchell Marsh claimed one each.

Teams:

Delhi Capitals (Playing XI): Prithvi Shaw, David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel, Sumit Kumar, Rasikh Dar Salam, Anrich Nortje, Ishant Sharma, Khaleel Ahmed

Subs: Abishek Porel, Kumar Kushagra, Praveen Dubey, Lalit Yadav, Jake Fraser-McGurk

Kolkata Knight Riders (Playing XI): Philip Salt(w), Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer(c), Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Mitchell Starc, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy

Subs: Suyash Sharma, Anukul Roy, Manish Pandey, Vaibhav Arora, Rahmanullah Gurbaz