Mitchell Starc joins KKR squad for IPL 2024 after taunting the Indian Premier League

The man who bagged the biggest and most lucrative Indian Premier League deal ever in the player auction, Kolkata Knight Riders‘ Australian recruit Mitchell Starc has landed in the City of Joy. Starc was the pick of the lot among pacers during the auctions for the 2024 season in Dubai’s Coca-Cola arena where the 2-time champions named the left-arm fast bowler for a sum of INR 24.75 crores.

KKR took to their official social media handles on Instagram and X to reveal that Mitchell Starc has arrived in West Bengal to join the camp for the much-awaited IPL season 17. KKR captioned the post with, “It’s a Star(c)y Knight! 🌟”. Most of the players, including skipper Shreyas Iyer, have joined the camp and have started preparing for their opening match against Sunrisers Hyderabad on March 23rd at their iconic home ground of Eden Gardens.

KKR welcomes Mitchell Starc with a creative post

It’s a Star(c)y Knight! 🌟 pic.twitter.com/vGdfnz1cOl

— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) March 17, 2024

In the post shared on KKR’s official social media handle, Mitchell Starc can be seen doing a Thumbs up pose, and behind him are some local depictions of the state. From the famous Yellow Taxi to the marvelous Victoria Memorial as well as the sweet delicacy of Bengal, the renowned “Roshogolla”.

Mitchell Starc does have some great memories of playing in the city and front of the Kolkata crowd at the Eden Gardens, most recently during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023. In the semi-final of the tournament, Starc registered bowling figures of 3/34 in 10 overs, including a maiden over as Australia restricted South Africa to 212.

Starc, in fact, scored the winning runs too, which ensured their qualification to the final where they defeated Rohit Sharma’s India by 6 wickets to claim their 6th WC title at the Narendra Modi stadium. And when the 34-year-old returns to the venue, he will be aiming to be at his best and contribute to KKR’s title-winning season for the first time since 2014.

The Knight Riders, who are mentored by their 2-time IPL winning skipper Gautam Gambhir, will hope for Mitchell Starc to play a pivotal role as he is the most experienced and senior in the team. Even if he contributes in at least 5-6 games in winning causes during the league stage and then in the knock-outs, KKR will feel that paying that amount for him was worth it.

Mitchell Starc also boasts of a decent record in the IPL circuit, claiming 34 wickets from 27 matches for Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2014 and 2015. The 2-time 50-over World Cup winner had scalped 14 wickets in his debut season and then impressive 20 wickets in the following season.

KKR Full squad for IPL 2024