Five wickets in 15 balls: Starc’s stunning spell and Boland’s hat-trick seal series win over West Indies

Kingston: Mitchell Starc did everything in his power to not make his 100th Test in Kingston about him, uncomfortable with the adulation that has come his way after bringing up such a special milestone.

That was until he was thrown a new pink Dukes ball — and the carnage began.

Stunning figures of 6-9 from Starc, coupled with a late Scott Boland hat-trick, spearheaded Australia to a crushing series whitewash against a West Indies outfit whose batting reached embarrassing new lows on Monday in Jamaica, one run more than of the worst total in Test cricket’s 148-year history.

Set 204 to claim their first win over Australia in the Caribbean since 2003, the West Indies crumbled to 6-11 in 5.2 overs.

They were eventually bowled out for 27 in 14.3 overs. On day three alone, 14 wickets fell for just 49 runs.

Australia’s much-vaunted pace attack destroyed a hapless West Indian order in the most ruthless manner possible. Captain Pat Cummins didn’t even need to bowl — and later joked he wasn’t disappointed about it.

Mitchell Starc celebrates his five-wicket haul.Credit: AP

“We all got it pretty spot on I think,” Starc said after recording career-best figures and earning player of the match and series honours. “I don’t think anyone thought it was going to happen that quickly. It’s been humbling to get messages [for the 100th Test]. It’s certainly been uncomfortable throughout the week. I was happy just to have a win and sing the [victory] song.”

For the fourth time in his Test career, Starc took a wicket with the first ball of an innings, removing John Campbell for a golden duck as Josh Inglis took a catch behind the stumps in place of Alex Carey, who was ruled out for the remainder of the match due to a concussion suffered while batting.

After three more dot balls, Starc struck twice in two balls to claim a triple wicket maiden with Kevlon Anderson and Brandon King trudging back to the pavilion before tea on day three.

Anderson’s attempt to leave a Starc inswinger will go down in the hall of fame as one of the worst leaves of all-time as it cannoned into his pad right in front of middle stump.

The scorecard from Starc’s opening over read: W000WW. This was wow indeed, but few could have forecast the drama to come.

“Crazy really,” Cummins said. “It was just fast-forward [cricket]. It’s just amazing. [Starc] was on fire. It went from feeling like we’re in a pretty good position, to the game just being ours in the space of five minutes.

“A three-wicket maiden in the first over of a Test innings is bonkers.”

Starc missed his hat-trick - Mikyle Louis blocked a good length ball - but had the scarcely believable figures of 5-2 from 15 balls when he removed Louis and Shai Hope with the 13th and 15th balls of his spell.

The Louis dismissal was Starc’s 400th Test wicket and gave him figures of 4-0 from 2.1 overs that most couldn’t even dream of pulling off on the Playstation. Starc joins Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and Nathan Lyon as the only other bowlers to take 400 Test wickets for Australia.

Scott Boland is mobbed by team-mates after his hat-trick.Credit: AP

It was the fastest five-wicket haul in Test history by some margin, eclipsing the returns of Ernie Toshack (1947), Stuart Broad (2015) and Scott Boland (2021), who brought up the milestone in 19 deliveries.

When Josh Hazlewood found the edge of West Indian skipper Roston Chase’s bat, the home side were 6-11 after 5.2 overs and in danger of being bowled out for the lowest Test total in history.

Just when it looked like Starc would dominate the headlines, Boland arrived in style.

After conceding two runs in his first over, Boland tore through the tail, dismissing Justin Greaves, Shamar Joseph and Jomel Warrican in consecutive deliveries. His hat-trick ball was the stuff dreams are made of, as it nipped in off the seam and crashed into Warrican’s stumps.

Boland was mobbed by teammates, who told him he should have celebrated more as he became the first Australian since Peter Siddle in 2010 to take a Test hat-trick.

It was Boland’s first hat-trick in any form of cricket.

“It’s amazing. This whole morning session happened really quick,” Boland said. “I didn’t really know how to feel when it happened. I’m really happy and to bowl a team out for 27 is cool.”

With a Sam Konstas misfield, the West Indies scraped to 27 — one more than New Zealand’s 26 against England in 1955.

The West Indies’ previous lowest total was 47 — also at Sabina Park, 21 years ago — but that effort looked respectable compared to this shambles in front of a small but jubilant group of travelling Australian fans.

“I think Cricket West Indies needs to sit down [and] I really think a few heads should roll for this,” former West Indian cricketer Carl Hooper said on ABC’s coverage.

West Indies skipper Roston Chase said he was “embarrassed” by the result.

“It’s disappointing,” Chase said. “Obviously we’ve been putting ourselves in positions to win games, and then we just lay down and not putting up a fight in the last batting innings. It’s quite heartbreaking … and being bowled out for less than 30 is quite embarrassing.”

Australia’s previous best bowling performance against a Test nation came in 1932 when they bowled South Africa out for 36.

Starc fittingly wrapped up the match - by bowling Jayden Seales, who had earlier given him a send-off - to finish with 6-9 from 7.3 overs. Boland took 3-2 from just two overs.