Brisbane, December 6, 2025: Australia’s veteran pacer Mitchell Starc on Saturday surpassed former England all-rounder Stuart Broad to become the leading run-scorer at the No.9 position in Test cricket.
Starc achieved the milestone with a resilient 77 off 141 balls on the third day of the pink-ball Ashes Test against England, batting at No.9 after Australia were 383/7 in response to England’s 334 all out. The 35-year-old left-hander anchored the lower order for over two-and-a-half hours, striking 13 fours in a disciplined innings.
With this knock, Starc has accumulated 1,408 runs at the No.9 spot in Tests, surpassing Broad’s tally of 1,389 runs. He also notched his 11th half-century in the format.
Other top run-scorers at No.9 in Tests are:
- Tim Southee (NZ) – 1,245
- Daniel Vettori (NZ) – 1,105
- Brett Lee (AUS) – 1,003
Starc’s batting, along with contributions from Jake Weatherald, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith, and Alex Carey, helped Australia post 511 all out, taking a 177-run lead.
England ended the third day at 134/6 in their second innings, still needing 43 runs to avoid an innings defeat. Unbeaten on four, Ben Stokes and Will Jacks will resume the innings on Sunday.
For Australia, Starc, Scott Boland, and Michael Neser have each taken two wickets in the ongoing innings.
