Starc pleads case for lively Ashes decks – cricket.com.au

The state of Australia’s pitches is on the agenda for the champion fast bowler as his side prepares to take on England across the five Tests
Mitchell Starc has urged curators to stick to their guns and roll out lively pitches for the Ashes, believing any push for Tests to go the distance should be irrelevant.
Curators will walk a fine line this summer, with Australia’s players desperate for greener wickets they believe can help take down England’s batting.
At the same time Cricket Australia believe this summer can provide a much-needed financial windfall, with record crowds expected and 13 of a possible 25 days already sold out.
Starc made his return to red-ball cricket on Monday, taking four Victorian wickets in the Sheffield Shield.
But he was also on the end of an onslaught from Sam Harper, who took the left-armer for 22 off one over before being caught on the boundary after tea.
Asked whether he expected England to take a similar approach this summer, Starc made no secret of what he thought of the wicket.
“Yeah, no doubt, especially if they’re pretty docile wickets like this,” Starc said. 
“We know the way they’re trying to play their cricket, so we’ll worry about it next week.”
Starc’s comments come after the SCG had the liveliest Test pitch of the summer last year, with Australia’s win over India coming inside eight sessions.
In the past four Australian summers only six Tests across the country have reached day five, with two of those virtually destroyed by rain.
At the same time, another six Tests have been wrapped up inside either two or three days.
Administrators generally need to bank on play extending into at least day four to maximise profit, given the final day often requires merely a charity donation to enter.
But Starc was clear in his message when asked whether he was worried pitches could be made flatter this summer in a bid to extend play.
“I hope the groundsmen stick to their guns and prepare the wickets they want,” he said. 
“If we’re worried about five days of revenue, then there’s bigger problems at hand.”
Stand-in captain Steve Smith and his deputy Travis Head are among the Australian players to have called for lively wickets to again be produced this summer.
Averages for batters in the top six have dropped by close to 10 runs per player in Australia this decade to 31.93, compared to 41.47 in the 2010s and 42.39 in the 2000s.
Cricket Australia CEO Todd Greenberg has indicated his organisation will not interfere.
“If I could get the roller out myself, I’d be on it,” Greenberg quipped last month.
“There are competing demands in Australian cricket and I understand that.
“There’s the performance demands and what might suit the teams best. There are commercial returns, which are really important.
“But ultimately, I think what we want to see is, in every city, that the wickets play like they should and there’s a great balance between bat and ball.”
First Test: November 21-25, Perth Stadium, 1.30pm AEDT
Second Test: December 4-8, The Gabba, Brisbane (D/N), 3.30pm AEDT
Third Test: December 17-21: Adelaide Oval, 11am AEDT
Fourth Test: December 26-30: MCG, Melbourne, 10.30am AEDT
Fifth Test: January 4-8: SCG, Sydney, 10.30am AEDT
Australia squad: (First Test only): Steve Smith (c), Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Starc, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster
England squad: Ben Stokes (c), Harry Brook (vc), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith (wk), Josh Tongue, Mark Wood
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