Starc the surprise act: Australia's No. 9 turns Ashes on its head

Mitchell Starc celebrates his half-century on Day 2 of the 3rd Ashes Test in Adelaide on Thursday

IMAGE: Mitchell Starc celebrates his half-century on Day 2 of the 3rd Ashes Test in Adelaide on Thursday. Photograph: Asanka Brendon Ratnayake/Reuters

Mitchell Starc’s Ashes has been a campaign to savour — and not just with the ball.

The Australian left-arm pacer added another remarkable chapter to his growing reputation as a lower-order match-winner on Saturday, becoming the first cricketer in Test history to register 10 fifty-plus scores while batting at No. 9 or lower.

The landmark came during the third Ashes Test at the Adelaide Oval, where Starc, once again batting at No. 9, counter-punched England with a brisk 54 off 75 balls, studded with nine boundaries. It was an innings that underlined how far he has come from being a mere tailender to a genuine contributor with the bat.

Starc’s numbers down the order make for compelling reading. Batting at No. 9 or below, he has now amassed 1,745 runs at an average of 24.57, with nine fifties in 95 innings and a highest score of 99. The closest challengers — England’s Stuart Broad and New Zealand’s Daniel Vettori — trail with six fifty-plus scores each.

At home in this Ashes series, Starc has been nothing short of sensational. In three Tests, he has scored 143 runs at an average of 47.66, with two fifties in as many innings, making him the fifth-highest run-getter in the series. With the ball, he has been even more devastating — 18 wickets at 15.33, including two five-wicket hauls and best figures of 7/58 — sitting comfortably atop the wickets chart.

Australia resumed day two on 326 for 8, with Nathan Lyon and Starc at the crease. The latter wasted little time in setting the tone, dispatching Jofra Archer and Brydon Carse to the fence to push Australia forward.

Starc reached his second fifty of the series in 73 balls, striking eight fours, before England finally struck back. Archer ended Lyon’s resistance, trapping him plumb in front for 9, and Australia were soon bowled out for 371 in 91.2 overs.

Archer was England’s standout performer with 5 for 53, while Carse and Will Jacks picked up two wickets apiece and Josh Tongue chipped in with one.

By stumps, England were 59 for 3, with Joe Root (11*) and Harry Brook (6*) at the crease, still trailing Australia by a daunting 312 runs.

Once again, it was Starc — the bowler who bats like a specialist — who had quietly shaped the day.