The cricket auction in the IPL set a record. Who is Mitchell Starc?

Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc has become the most expensive player to be sold at the Indian Premier Cricket League auction.

Kolkata Knight Riders today shelled out around $3 million (Rs 24.75 crore Indian rupees) for him. The bid for Starc surpassed the offer for Peta Cummins, for whom another IPL club, Sunrisers Hyderabad, today gave approximately USD 2.5 million (Rs 20.50 crore Indian rupees).

Mitchell Starc is now 33 years old. During his career, he has played for New South Wales, Sydney Sixers, Yorkshire and Royal Challengers Bangalore.

At the international level, Starc made his ODI debut on October 20, 2010 against India. He won the World Cup with the Australian national team in 2015 and 2023. In 2021, the bowler won the T20 World Cup and in the 2021/2023 season, he won the World Test Championship. Starc is among five players to have won the ICC trophy in three different formats of the game.

Starc holds the record for the fastest delivery in a Test match: 160.4 km/hour. He also became the fastest bowler to reach the 150 and 200 wicket marks with scores of 77 and 102 respectively. It took him just 19 matches in the World Cup to reach the 50-wicket mark. At the 2019 World Cup, Mitchell took 19 wickets, which is an all-time record for a single tournament.

Kolkata Knight Riders last won the Indian Premier League in 2014. The franchise is owned by Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan, actress Juhi Chawla and her husband Jay Mehta. Last season, the team finished seventh and failed to qualify for the playoffs.