Mitchell Starc's childhood coach takes us down the memory lane, explaining how he transitioned into becoming a fast bowler.
Ask batters to list their top-most nightmare in Test cricket, and Mitchell Starc at the top of his mark would certainly be the common one on every list. The Australian left-arm speedster scalped 31 wickets in the Ashes 2025-26 series, leaving most of the English batters bamboozled.
The cricketing world reckons Mitchell Starc as the tall left-arm speedster who can rattle batting line-ups at will, irrespective of what the conditions have to offer. However, not many would be aware of the fact that one of the most feared speedsters today, started off as a wicketkeeper-batter in his early days.
Mitchell Starc’s childhood coach revealed that he observed a tall 14-year-old boy keeping wickets at Homebush Boys High School. His coach, Neil D’Costa remembers immediately calling young Mitchell Starc over for a discussion, stating that he wanted Starc to bowl.
The 35-year-old, who was then 14, resisted first, but was sternly told by the coach that he would have to bowl if he had to make the team. This time, Starc agreed. D’Costa states that this was the end of Mitchell Starc’s wicketkeeping career.
“Mate, I’m the head coach here. So it might be a good idea to do what I say”.
These were the words which ignited the commencement of Mitchell Starc’s bowling – something that the game of cricket would thank him for.
Seeing young Mitchell Starc bowl, D’Costa was instantly convinced that the skill that the kid possessed was something special. This feeling almost immediately turned into Starc’s first break, with D’Costa arranging his move to the West Club Academy.
That’s where the grind began. The training which the youngster was put through was gruelling and demanding, to say the least. Starc was made to bowl 100 deliveries every Sunday in the off-season, something that he never complained about despite being bored.
But there was an immediate challenge. Mitchell Starc could bowl really fast, but his deliveries had no control. In this phase, there were many people who would ask him to slow his pace own in order to fins his line and length. However, D’Costa had a completely contrasting opinion.
“If any muppet tells you to slow down and get line and length, make a mental note. He does not understand the game. It is called fast bowling”, D’Costa would tell Starc.
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D’Costa recalled a second grade match in which Starc was opening the bowling. The left-arm speedster bowled a beamer in the very second over, and was left with a warning. One thing that it did for sure, was that it left the batter very scared.
Cut to another over, there was another flying beamer, and that was the end of Starc’s spell in that game. The young Australian went down to the boundary at fine-leg, completely distraught. Starc stood there and told D’Costa that he felt like he was useless, and could never bowl.
“Relax man, you’re going to play for Australia”, the response came from beyond the boundary.
The young tall lad, standing on the boundary was awestruck. His bowling had zero control, and he had just been cut off his spell due to beamers. However, the message was clear from D’Costa – focus on speed and swing, learn the rest later. Eventually, that was what got Mitchell Starc into the NSW U17 squad.
The next time someone tells a fast bowler to slow down, just read these numbers to them. 433 wickets across 105 Tests at an economy of 3.44 with 18 five-wicket hauls!
These numbers are surely not the by-product of slowing down!
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