Playing for Australia more important than franchise cricket money: Mitchell Starc

One of the finest pacers of the current generation Mitchell Starc keeps away from the franchise cricket including the IPL despite the handsome money on offer as he wants to be at his best playing for AustraliaFor Starc playing Test cricket for Australia is paramount a path he hopes many youngsters will follow in futureSeveral colleagues of Starc have appeared in various T20 leagues across the globe such as Indian Premier League IPL Big Bash but the leftarm pacer has managed to stay away from the lureI enjoyed it IPL likewise I enjoyed my time at Yorkshire 10 years ago but Australia will always sit at the top I dont regret any of it money will come and go but Im very grateful for the opportunities Ive had Starc told The GuardianOver a hundred years of Test cricket and theres been less than 500 men who have played it for Australia that in itself makes it very special to be a part of itThe traditionalist in me still hopes there is a generation of boys and girls who want to represent their country in Test cricket But the easy money is in franchise cricket its the fast track to notoriety he addedThe 33yearold who last played franchise cricket back in 2015 for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL is clear in his mind that Test cricket will remain his priority for the foreseeable futureId certainly love to play in the IPL again but my goal for a long time has been to be at my best for Australia no matter the format Starc assertedAustralia defeated India by 209 runs to lift their maiden World Test Championship mace on the Sunday The men from Down Under now have all ICC titles having already won the ODI and T20 World Cups and the Champions TrophyTheres nothing I love more in cricket than to sit back with my teammates at the end of a Test win and reflect on the success weve had that week To be able to pull on the baggy green with a lot of my close mates guys Ive grown up in the game with Starc saidFranchise cricket is great but you can be bought or sold or traded in 12 months whereas this is an opportunity Playing Tests that Ive been fortunate enough to have over 10 years now To be able to pull on the baggy green with a lot of my close mates guys Ive grown up in the game withStarc lauded England for changing the landscape of Test cricket while playing the Bazball under coach Brendon McCullum and skipper Ben Stokes but wondered whether they would be able to pull it off against a quality bowling unit like Australia in the AshesIf we have traditional English pitches which nip around and if the overhead conditions play a part will they still be so aggressive with the Ashes on the line I guess well find it out said StarcAlso Read WTC Final Personally I would like to see a lot more Test cricket being played says Rahul DravidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever