Brian Lara gives his verdict on costliest ever IPL player Mitchell Starc with 'Not his forte' comment

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Mitchell Starc has got backing from none other Brian Lara after his very expensive Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) debut against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the Eden Gardens on Friday, March 22.

Starc, who became the costliest ever player in the history of the IPL after being bought for Rs 24.75 crore at the 2024 auction, leaked as many as 53 runs without taking a wicket.

Mitchell Starc was hammered for four sixes in the 19th over which saw him give away 26 runs. The expensive over brought the equation down to 13 off the last six deliveries for SRH.Harshit Rana bowled a brilliant final over to hand KKR a six-wicket win, and give Starc also a major sigh of relief.

West Indies legend Brian Lara has come to the rescue of Starc, saying that the left-arm pacer's strength is to bowl with the new ball, and is not as effective towards the end of an innings.

“I think the strength of Mitchell Starc, we all know around the world, is that ability to use that new ball to get wickets. He didn't get any wickets with the new ball," Brian Lara said while speaking exclusively to Star Sports on 'Cricket Live'.

"And when you play him at the back end, that's not his forte, his forte is up front. But it's only the first game, so it's alright," he added for Starc, who is playing in the IPL for the first time since 2015.

Mitchell Starc gave 12 runs in his first over, and 10 in his second over (KKR's third). He returned back in the 16th over and gave away just five runs, before being torn apart by Henrich Klaasen and Shahbaz Ahmed in the 19th overs.

Kolkata Knight Riders will next be in action against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the MChinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Friday, March 29.