"Steve Smith Comes Over, ‘Are You Angry At Me?" - Mitchell Starc Recalls An Untold Anecdote From 2017 Champions Trophy
Published - 08 Sep 2023, 07:21 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 12:18 AM
Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc shared an interesting story from the 2017 Champions Trophy in England involving former skipper Steve Smith. Mitchell Starc revealed that then-captain Steve Smith criticized the bowlers in the media rather than directly addressing the issue with them.
Australia played against New Zealand in their first match of the 2017 Champions Trophy in England. The Australian bowlers bowled out the opposition for 291 runs in Birmingham. Mitchell Starc went wicketless in the match against the Black Caps, conceding 52 runs in his nine-over spell.
We Didn’t Bowl That Well – Mitchell Starc
In an interview on the Willow Talk podcast, Mitchell Starc admitted the team’s poor bowling performance against New Zealand and mentioned that Steve Smith didn’t discuss it with the team.
“We played New Zealand in the first game and admittedly we didn’t bowl that well, but it was a washout. I remember Smithy, who was the captain didn’t say anything to the bowlers about it but said it in the media like had a bit of a crack,” Starc recalled.
Mitchell Starc revealed that he tried to bowl aggressively to Steve Smith during the net session ahead of the match against Bangladesh. Starc said that Matthew Wade received a fiery delivery that was 100% by accident.
“We went to The Oval for the game against Bangladesh and I reckon it was the day before the game I wasn’t supposed to be bowling much and bowled pretty much had my quota and then Smith came into the net,” he added.
“I tried to bowl as quickly as I could every ball. And it was either, he’d miss it, he’d end up on his backside, or he’d hit it for a six and it happened for a good four overs. He was batting with Matty Wade and as batters they do rotate in the net and it was 100% by accident, Well Wadey got one. And he picked up his bat and goes, What the EFF did I do to ya?”
Smithy Comes Over, ‘Are You Angry At Me?” – Mitchell Starc
The left-arm pacer humorously recounted how he continued bowling aggressively to Steve Smith during the practice session until teammate Josh Hazlewood intervened.
“And walked to the other end and I kept going at Smithy and then the physio came over and said ‘You’ve had enough, you’ve got to play tomorrow.’ Nup bang, bang, bang, bang, bang. Josh Hazlewood came over and dragged me. He’s like, ‘Done,’ and I went up to the room, got my shoes off, ready to go home. Smithy comes over, ‘Are you angry at me?” he concluded.
