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Ace star fast bowler Mitchell Starc is set to spearhead Australia's pace attack against arch-rivals England in the first Ashes Test, scheduled to start from Friday at Perth's Optus Stadium. Contrary to the common belief that pacers lose effectiveness as they age, Starc, now 35, has consistently improved, as evidenced by his records.
Starc has established a formidable reputation in the cricketing world, becoming a name that commands respect and fear alike from most batters worldwide. A statistics graphic released by cricket.com.au shows Starc's career broken down into three periods -- from December 2011 to November 2016, from November 2016 to November 2021, and from November 2021 to the present and Starc's stats only get better with time. Between December 2011 and November 2016, Starc featured in 28 of Australia's 56 matches, representing a 50% participation rate. From November 2016 to November 2021, his involvement increased significantly, as he played 33 out of 43 matches - a 76.7% participation rate. His consistency has only improved since November 2021, as he has appeared in 39 of 43 Tests, achieving an impressive 90.7% participation rate. Starc's consistency and effectiveness have improved steadily over the years. From December 2011 to November 2016, he took 115 wickets at an average of 27.36 with a strike rate of 47.9, had 6 wicketless innings (14%), 7 five-wicket hauls and 20 three-wicket hauls. Between November 2016 and November 2021, his wickets went up to 140 at an average of 27.74 with a strike rate of 50.4; wicketless innings dropped to just 4 of 55 (7.3%), and he had 6 five-wicket hauls and 26 three-wicket hauls. Since November 2021, he has claimed 147 wickets at an improved average of 26.06 and a strike rate of 44.3, had just four wicketless innings (7.1%), three five-wicket hauls, and 26 three-wicket hauls, underlining his rising consistency and impact. Starc will take the field in Perth without his long-time strike partners Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, both of whom are nursing injuries. He will instead be supported by Scott Boland, along with either Brendan Doggett or Michael Neser and will look to improve his stats even further. Australia and England team squads for Ashes 2025-26: Australia squad: (First Test only): Steve Smith (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Mitchell Starc, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster England squad: Ben Stokes (c), Harry Brook (vc), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith (wk), Josh Tongue, Mark Wood. (ANI)
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