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On his 35th birthday, Mitchell Starc became the fourth Australian to reach 700 international wickets, joining Warne, McGrath, and Lee, during the first Test in Galle.
Mitchell Starc (AP Photo)
On his 35th birthday, Australian left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Starc became the fourth Australian to pick 700 international wickets across formats with his scalp of Sri Lankan opener Dimuth Karunaratne in the first Test of 2025 between the two countries at the Galle International Stadium on Thursday. He has joined the elite list which so far only had Shane Warne (1001 wickets), Glenn McGrath (949) and Brett Lee (718).
Before the match, he was level with South African great Dale Steyn at 699 wickets. He achieved the milestone on the second ball of the fifth over. It was a shortish ball outside off, tempting Karunaratne to play on the up, only to take a thick outside edge to Nathan McSweeney at slips. McSweeney shelled the first attempt but dived to grab it on the second time, kicking off happy celebrations in the Aussie camp.
Only 10 pacers now have more international wickets than Starc. He has achieved the figure in his 15th year in international cricket and 287th match. Overall, his career average is at an exemplary 25.80. Karunaratne was his 377th Test wicket, with 244 of his victims coming in ODIs and 79 in T20Is.
It was almost a perfect birthday for him. Earlier in the day, he hit two fours and a six to remain not-out at 19 (19) as Australia declared at 654/6. Usman Khawaja scored a double century while Steve Smith and Josh Inglis also contributed hundreds.
It was a record-breaking day throughout. Khawaja became one of the oldest players to hit a double ton in Asia, Smith reached 10,000 Test runs while Inglis’s 102 (94) was one of the quickest Test tons on debut.
“Hasn’t quite sunk in yet,” Inglis said after Stumps. “Really special day, something I’m really proud of, nice for the family as well. Getting a boundary first ball is always nice. Because I’ve been around this group for a while, it didn’t feel like an extra jump. Really nice to get this opportunity. Really special, nice to have your family around, mum and dad made the quick dash over. It’s nothing that anyone can take away from me, a hundred on debut is really special and I’m proud of it.”
