ENG vs IND 2025: 'Who would be a kid in England and want to bowl those wickets?' - Mitchell Starc slams usage of batting-friendly surfaces in England

Ever since Brendon McCullum joined as England's head coach in red-ball cricket and formed a partnership with captain Ben Stokes, the Three Lions have preferred playing home Tests on flat decks. This is because they have adopted an ultra-aggressive approach while batting, and the flat surfaces have made it possible for them to score rapidly to rattle the opposition.

However, the ploy backfired in the second Test at Edgbaston against India in the ongoing Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. Indian captain Shubman Gill became the first batter in Test cricket to amass a double century and 150 in the same match. The tourists won the lopsided encounter by 336 runs.

Shubman scored a whopping 585 runs in his first four innings on the tour of England. Australian speedster Mitchell Starc, who is currently in the West Indies, playing a three-match Test series, said that he wouldn't want to bowl to Shubman on such unresponsive pitches. The left-arm pacer said that young England cricketers wouldn't want to focus on the art of bowling if the wickets continue to be as favourable as it is now for the batters.

“I wouldn’t bowl to him in England, that’s for sure. I didn’t see much of the game, I saw the scorecards. There was a few guys that were waking up, particularly Marnus and Alex Carey and Steve Smith who would sit around a coffee machine and watch the game. I did see the scores. Who would be a kid in England and want to bowl on some of those wickets. But from all reports, it was very sub-continent like which I find it hard to believe,” Starc said on the Willow Talk Podcast (via Indian Express).

Australia played the World Test Championship (WTC) final at Lord's last month against South Africa. Bowlers enjoyed bowling on the surface as wickets fell in clusters on the first couple of days before things got better for the batters. However, the ongoing third Test between India and England at the same venue is being played on a pitch where the bowlers are not getting as much assistance.