Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc is taking legal action to get $1.53 million of his Indian Premier League contract paid out after he was injured in last year's ill-fated Test series against South Africa.
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Starc, 29, filed a lawsuit in the Victorian County Court last week against the insurers of his lucrative deal to play for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the world's richest T20 tournament.
The left-arm quick was one of the most sought-after Australian players at the 2018 IPL auction when he was snapped up for $1.8 million, a price tag bettered only by the hard-hitting Chris Lynn who went for $1.86 million.
However, Starc failed to bowl a delivery during the tournament when he broke down with injury in the preceding series against South Africa, which was marred by the ball tampering plot that led to lengthy bans for Steven Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft.
To cap off a tour of woe for the Australians, Starc suffered a calf complaint in the second Test in Port Elizabeth before succumbing to a fracture of his right tibial bone in the infamous third Test in Cape Town.
That Test has since proven to be a financial disaster for the nation's top cricketers, in addition to the reputational damage, after Smith and Warner both had $2.4 million contracts torn up by their respective teams for their involvement in the tampering affair.
According to court documents, Starc took out a policy that would pay him a $1.53 million benefit if he missed the IPL season through injury.
Starc, represented by Mills Oakley lawyers, is suing a syndicate of Lloyd's of London, the long-running insurance market where coverage can be bought for unique circumstances that traditional insurers don't insure against.
The writ states Starc paid a premium of $97,920 to be covered between February 27 and March 31 in 2018, when the tournament ended.
On March 10, Starc claims he started feeling pain in his right calf while bowling during the second Test in Port Elizabeth. The injury was a result of bowling on uneven footmarks on a worn pitch, Starc claims.
