‘Harden the f*** up’ – Mitchell Starc reveals stern advice that changed his game

Mitchell Starc. (Photo by Gareth Copley-ICC/ICC via Getty Images)

Mitchell Starc will find himself on the cusp of a significant milestone, with echoes of former Australia coach Tim Nielsen’s words urging him forward. Should he claim two wickets at Hagley Oval this week against New Zealand in the second Test, he will surpass Dennis Lillee on Australia’s all-time leading Test wicket-takers list, and will secure the fourth position behind Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, and Nathan Lyon. Starc, however, takes equal pride in his upcoming seventh consecutive Test appearance during the southern hemisphere summer.

In his illustrious 14-year international career, Starc hadn’t had a long run of matches as he has presently. The closest he came was during the 2017-18 season, where he missed just one Test out of eight amidst a gruelling schedule against England and South Africa. Once deemed fragile, he has metamorphosed into Australia’s iron man, battling through pain to represent his country. Recalling a pivotal conversation during his early tours in 2010, he embraced the ethos that enduring pain is inherent to the job.

“I was still learning what all those pains were and obviously the reports get around from physios to coaches and I sort of got told to harden the f*** up a little bit. Timmy Nielsen probably made me aware that early doors. Obviously, there’s plenty of times you need to be honest with the medical staff but other times you got to know when to push through things,” Starc said as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

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People don’t see or whether it be the rehab or the handling of niggles: Starc

Over the past year, the pacer has encountered one of those challenging periods. Despite featuring in only four Tests, he emerged as Australia’s top wicket-taker during the away Ashes series last year.

Then after being slated to play in the limited-overs tour of South Africa ahead of the ODI World Cup, he was sidelined due to persistent groin discomfort. Starc has maintained a veil of secrecy regarding the specifics of his injury, and refrained from divulging details of the extent of his discomfort.

“I think a lot of work goes into that a lot of work that people don’t see or whether it be the rehab or the handling of niggles or there’s certainly sore mornings for a lot of people. But I think that comes down to experiencing and knowing how to deal with certain things and finding ways through them to still make an impact with a team or perform and carry out your role,” he added.