Top 5 spells by Mitchell Starc in T20 cricket

Mitchell Starc’s T20 career hasn’t been about volume so much as it has been about impact. When he’s at his best in the shortest format, he produces short, brutal spells that change games in a handful of overs. Toe-crushing yorkers, searing bouncers, and the kind of late-over death bowling that forces bad shots have been his speciality. Here are the top five T20 spells from Starc’s career.

1. 5/35 - Delhi Capitals v Sunrisers Hyderabad, 2025

Starc’s standout T20 day came while playing in the Indian Premier League 2025 when he ripped through Sunrisers Hyderabad’s batting line-up for five wickets while playing for Delhi Capitals. His 5/35 stunned a line-up that included several big hitters and effectively wrecked Hyderabad’s chase, handing DC a comfortable win. 

It wasn’t just the raw numbers. It was the timing, but early strikes that stopped momentum, plus a couple of late scalps that finished the job. For a pace bowler to take a five-for in the IPL and on pitches that often help batters is a statement of both skill and nerve. This was also his first and only fifer in T20 cricket.

2. 4/15 - Royal Challengers Bangalore v Kings XI Punjab, 2015

This 2015 IPL spell is a reminder that Starc has long had the T20 killer instinct. Starc’s 4/15 for RCB remains one of his purest T20 bowling displays. Chinnaswamy is a batting venue, and RCB’s total of 226 that night could easily have been chased. Instead, Starc produced a clinical burst that removed Punjab’s middle order cheaply and ended the chase inside 14 overs. 

The beauty of this spell was the mix of perfectly disguised slower balls, heavy yorkers and clever use of short balls to force errors. It’s the kind of four-wicket burst that turns a high-scoring shootout into a comfortable win.

3. 4/20 - Australia v West Indies, 2022

With his career-best T20I stats against the West Indies in Brisbane in 2022, Starc demonstrated his class and expertise. He launched the onslaught with a shrewd caught-and-bowled dismissal of Kyle Mayers, defending 178. Shortly after, he dismissed all-rounder Jason Holder and sent attacking batsman and Caribbean captain Nicholas Pooran packing.

He finished a fantastic spell of 4/20 by dismissing Odean Smith in the match's last over. Australia won the series thanks to his effort, which also demonstrated why he was still such a dangerous bowler right up until the end of his T20I career.

4. 4/33 - Kolkata Knight Riders v Mumbai Indians, 2024

Bowling for KKR, Starc produced 4/33 in a high-pressure Wankhede game, a venue that traditionally helps batters. He struck early and then clamped down at intervals, removing set batters and preventing partnerships from forming. 

That performance was pivotal in KKR breaking a long Wankhede hoodoo and showed Starc’s ability to adapt his lines to death overs at a ground that rewards power hitting. It’s a reminder he can do it for different franchises and in hostile batting environments.

5. 3/11 - Australia v Pakistan, 2012

Mitchell Starc's second-best performance was against Pakistan in the year 2012. Australia was playing Pakistan in the third T20 International of the series in Dubai. After batting first, the Australian team scored 168 for 7, with David Warner contributing 59 runs.

In contrast, Starc's fantastic bowling stats of 3 for 11 in his 3.1 overs and Pat Cummins' outstanding numbers of 3 for 15 in his four overs helped Pakistan be bowled out for a pitiful 74 in reply. The Pakistani team was unable to win as a result of these two outstanding bowling performances.

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