‘Is he still a potent force’: Former Aussie keeper concerned over Mitchell Starc’s form before 2023 World Cup semi-final

“Is (Starc) still a potent force? He’s not been potent at all in this tournament. 10 wickets off eight games is not bad but where is he taking these wickets? He won’t be potent at all until he gets it right and zero in on the stumps much better than he has. Fire into those stumps and feet,” Healy said.

Starc has picked up only four wickets in the first powerplay at a dismal average of 34.75.

“If we haven’t got South Africa one or two wickets down in that powerplay, then it’ll be a big total to chase,” Healy said while expressing concern.

However, Starc defended his performance in the World Cup and said, “If you look at pure numbers, there’s been a lot of guys across a lot of teams not have the numbers they would have liked… the wickets have certainly been two very different wickets through the day and through the night.”

“It’s certainly been more beneficial to swing the ball and nip the ball under lights. I think there’s a lot of contributing factors, speed’s not the be all and end all over here in India as well,” he added.

Australia will take on South Africa in the all-important semi-final at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Thursday.