Alyssa Healy reveals what it’s like behind the mic when her husband Mitch Starc is playing
Casting judgment on your spouse while mic’d up on national television is a tough job, but it’s one that Mitch Starc and Alyssa Healy are still happy to navigate.
Casting judgment on your spouse while mic’d up to a national television audience.
It is an unusual dynamic to say the least, but it is one Alyssa Healy and Mitchell Starc learned last summer when they commentated on each other’s games for Fox and Channel 7 respectively.
Healy was in the Fox Cricket and Kayo Sports commentary box for periods of the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy series in which her husband Starc was opening the bowling for Australia.
The shoe was on the other foot later in the season when Starc was providing his expert view when Healy was captaining the Aussies in the women’s Ashes. He was even on air when Healy fell to an edge from Lauren Bell in a one-day international, with the quirky coincidence of a husband commentating his wife’s departure going viral.
Though she remains tied up with Women’s Big Bash League commitments for the Sydney Sixers and won’t be at the Brisbane Test this week, Healy is in Fox’s plans for the back end of the Ashes series.
“We’ve got a little bit of time around Christmas,” Healy said.
“So I’m looking forward to being around the Ashes a little bit and working a bit with Fox. That’ll be good fun. So got to be careful, still playing and what I can and can’t say, but I’m looking forward to that interaction with the Fox crew.”
She concedes being on air when her husband is involved in the middle makes for a potentially tricky dynamic but ultimately sees the fun side to it all.
“I don’t mind it. I mean, obviously the opportunities I’ve got, I’m in a seat at certain times, and it’s quite obvious as to why I’m in that seat at certain times, but it’s fine,” Healy said.
“I mean, the opportunity to talk about the game and probably give some insights into what’s actually happening out on the field. I feel like it’s been a really enjoyable part of it. So I don’t, I try and steer clear of Mitch. We rib one another a bit when we’re in commentary, and it’s taken lightheartedly. So hopefully he takes poles, and I’m watching there. That’d be cool.”
Starc was named player of the match in the first Ashes Test, taking 10 wickets in Australia’s two-day victory over England at Perth Stadium. He is two scalps shy of drawing level with Pakistani great Wasim Akram (414) for the most wickets by a left-arm quick in Test history.
Originally published as Alyssa Healy reveals what it’s like behind the mic when her husband Mitch Starc is playing
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