Starc puts the Ashes before IPL riches

Australian left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Starc has said that he will give a miss to the Indian Premier League Twenty20 tournament next year to prepare for the Starc is reportedly being offered up to 500,000 dollars to play in next year's IPL, but he says he wants to be in peak condition for the Ashes.

The 22-year-old has played just two Tests in succession and is coming off a match-winning performance in Hobart, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.

It is understood he expects to play at the MCG against Sri Lanka, but the decision could be taken out of his hands by Cricket Australia's team performance unit, which tells selectors if bowlers are in the danger zone for injury.

Such a move would deliver a Test debut to Jackson Bird, but would be controversial given the athletic left-armer Starc is in such dangerous form.