Starc raring to go ahead of Pakistan Tests

Australia pacer Mitchell Starc is relishing the prospect of bowling on the fast and bouncy pitches on home soil once again as his side gear up for the two-match Test series against Pakistan, starting at the Gabba from Thursday.

After pacer James Pattinson’s abuse ban, Cricket Australia said that the quick would not be replaced in the squad for the Test series against Pakistan, which means Starc is likely to play alongside Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood in Australia's pace attack for the match at the Gabba.

"It's nice to come back to Australia where hopefully the wickets are fast and a bit bouncier, and go back to that mindset of controlled aggression,” Starc was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au. "It's not out-and-out aggression, or trying to bowl as fast as I can and spraying the ball around. But a strength of mine is running in and bowling fast, so what I've learned over the last nine months is about having a bit of that control there as well."

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The left-arm pacer also stressed the importance of keeping things simple with the ball and the change in his mindset.

"I probably learned a fair bit about mindset over the last nine to twelve months, and I've been pretty clear and pretty level which, in turn, has helped my bowling,” he said. "Having that really clear mindset and keeping it pretty simple - just run in and bowl fast, and that's what I've done well in Australia.”

Starc played just one of five Tests in this year's Ashes series and spent more time on the sidelines trying to tweak his bowling style and strategies.