Mitchell Starc Returns with a Bang as Delhi Capitals Crush Rajasthan Royals

The left-arm pacer, who missed the first half of the season due to a shoulder and elbow injury sustained during a Big Bash League game for Sydney Sixers, made an immediate impact on his comeback. His timely strikes in the death overs helped restrict Rajasthan to 225/6, a total that was eventually chased down by DC, their highest successful run-chase in IPL history.

"Yeah, always great to start with a win. It's nice to be back, it's sort of been around the group for a week, about a week now, so yeah, nice to get some training in. Watched a couple of games from the sideline, but nice to be back out there with the team tonight and to get the win. Nice to change some momentum for us," Starc said in a video shared by IPL, reflecting on his return after a lengthy layoff

Starc had undergone rehabilitation in February and faced some discomfort upon resuming bowling, which delayed his entry into the tournament. Having not bowled to a batter for nearly three months, the Australian admitted it took time to readjust to the pace of white-ball cricket.

"Yeah, it's the first time I've bowled to a batter in about three months the other night, so I mean, I've played long enough to kind of know what I need to do to get ready, so it probably took a while to get the speed of the game and haven't played white-ball cricket for a little while, so it's a bit quicker than test cricket, but yeah, nice to get some miles on the legs and obviously to get the win was the main one," he stated.

Despite the rust, Starc played a crucial role with the ball, particularly by removing key batters including Riyan Parag and Ravindra Jadeja in quick succession, halting Rajasthan's momentum in the latter stages after a strong middle-overs surge.

Highlighting the importance of early breakthroughs against Rajasthan, he said, "Yeah, we know that Rajasthan are a team that have had some big, I guess, opening wicket partnerships and both the openers have played really well for them for a number of games, so for us, I think any game powerplay wickets are key, but certainly against Rajasthan, if we get into that middle order in the power play, certainly means we're sort of pushing the game on our terms a little bit more than them, so to get two early ones tonight was a big help. Obviously, a few partnerships through the middle, but yeah, I think our batters chased it almost to perfection."

Delhi's chase of 226 was anchored by half-centuries from KL Rahul and Pathum Nissanka, with contributions from Nitish Rana ensuring the side maintained control of the required rate throughout. Starc praised the batting unit for executing what he termed a near-perfect chase.

"I think seeing some of the, you know, the Hyderabad game here the other night, where it was quite easy to chase, it was a, I think, a 220-odd run total there as well, obviously that opening partnership in the top order for us was going to be key and to get to have an opening partnership like we did was fantastic and then the guys that came in throughout the innings just picked up where the last man left off, so yeah, pretty clinical, I think, from the bat with us today. Near on perfect chase, I think, and to do it with an over the spare is pretty good," the Aussie pacer noted.

The win also helped Delhi Capitals arrest a three-match losing streak, offering a timely boost as the tournament enters a crucial phase. Looking ahead, Starc emphasised the importance of building momentum after a mixed run of results.

"Yeah, it's, I mean, any wins, it's a good win. Obviously, a very mixed couple of results the last two games with, you know, like you say, pretty polar opposites in terms of the way the game's played out, but yeah, we spoke about it's a new month, so we'll take some different momentum, particularly after this win and we'll just take it one game at a time and now we'll just focus on our next game and see where we're at after that," he concluded.

- IANS