Watching from the sidelines can be a little bit frustrating: Mitchell Starc

Mitchell Starc, Australian left-arm pacer, has admitted on Friday (June 17) that he could break down if he plays every single game considering the amount of cricket that is being played these days.

But at the same time, he also says that he was not happy to sit out games despite being fit. Australia opted to rest The left-arm fast bowler has just played two of Australia’s four games in the ongoing tri-series but is expected to feature in the next game against South Africa on Sunday (June 19) for the game against South Africa.

“It’s part of the plan unfortunately,” he said speaking about his stop-start return. “Being fit this time around and watching from the side can be a little bit frustrating. But I’ve got to look at the bigger picture and there’s a lot to come in the next six months so I’ll stick by the plan and stick by what the medicos tell me to do, said Starc speaking to cricket.com.au.

“I don’t have too much say in it. I want to play every game. Being in one game and being out the next … it’s very different bowling in the nets compared to out in the middle.

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“I’m in the same boat as Josh (Hazlewood) in that I’d love to play every game just to have that rhythm and consistent cricket and I think that’s something I did over the past 12 months before I got injured. I was playing consistently and it was showing in my performances.”

Starc underwent a surgery on his ankle in December last year and had to miss the World Twenty20 and the Indian Premier League as a result. He finally made his much awaited international comeback during the tri-series and has also been named in the Test squad to play Sri Lanka next month.

“The bigger picture (is) we have three Tests against Sri Lanka, a one-day series that follows that, a one-day series in South Africa and then we’ve got the home summer. It’s feeling really good but I’ve just got to manage that at this point in time. That’s for the medicos to do and me to sit back, unfortunately.”

While this might be the first time that he is bowling pain free in nearly 12 months, he understands the need to rest, recuperate and maintain a proper workload. But that isn’t stopping him from getting frustrated at not playing.

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“I’m getting used to being told what to do,” he said with a smile. It’d be really nice to play every single game, but the sheer amount of cricket we play these days, if you play every game you’re going to break down at some point so you have to be a little bit smarter about it.

“At the moment I’m feeling really good, I’m feeling strong and ready to go at every point. It’s about me getting right for the next game and if that involves playing, that’s lovely. But if it means I have to rest or sit out here and there, I’ll have to cop that on the chin as well.

“It’s about finding that happy medium where you’re not bowling yourself into the ground and you’re injured every 12 months, but at the same time you want to keep that rhythm and be fresh enough to play as much as you can.”