”He bowls to the left, he bowls to the right, that Mitchell Johnson, his bowling is …”. This chant has not only echoed in Johnson’s ears, but every English cricket ground since last the Ashes series.
Although harsh, it is somewhat true. Yet credibly, Johnson remains upbeat about his recent comeback from an eight month layoff due to a plaguing toe injury.
He laughs off the boisterous jibes to which he undoubtedly now knows all the words too, taking it as a compliment, “I think they wouldn’t put so much crap on me if they weren’t threatened,” he said.
Most would have supported Johnson’s admission that he thought about walking away from the game. Not me. Despite being the most frustrating cricketer on the planet, I believe Johnson will step up and spearhead our exciting, yet inexperienced pace attack for the next five years at least.
It is often those with the most potential who fall the hardest. Mitch learned this the hard way.
He announced himself on the South African tour of 2008, with few able to forget his unplayable performance of 8/61 in 2008 against the Proteas. Yet a year later in England, he went missing and one became aware of his often volatile mental strength.
Not only did his once potent swing and accuracy desert him, but more importantly, his confidence was shot. The new ball taken away from him, his shoulders slumped and the golden boy of Australian cricket seemed a distant memory.
Despite a hopeful resurgence after his 6/38 in Perth in 2011, he has never really fulfilled his undoubted natural talent with both bat and ball.
Who the hell knows? A question often asked by those watching him as he sprints into his delivery stride. Mitch included. The Australian press have rallied for Johnson to be dropped for the majority of his career, and deservedly so.
However, few argue that he belongs on the international cricket stage. The question is whether he will ever use his natural talent to productive effect. I think he can.
We are blessed with an enormously talented young crop of quicks including James Pattinson, Patrick Cummins, Ben Cutting and Mitchell Starc, who will all be on the international scene for the next decade at least. But someone needs to lead them.
Someone needs to step up and spearhead this talented, yet inexperienced attack in both forms of the game. That someone is Mitchell Johnson. Australia need a fast lefty, one can actually scare batsman with pace.
I am as big of fan of Mitchell Starc as the next bloke, however as much as I want to, I can’t go past Johnson. We can’t forget that he is still the number one ranked Australian one day bowler with an average of 25.22.
As much as I wanted Mitch to come back on the international scene following his injury, I can’t disagree more about the way in which it happened.
He returned in the second ODI in the recent one day series in England, finishing with figures of 0-43 off 7 overs. Players need to go back to their respective states and earn a recall.
Fair enough for players who have earned their stripes, but over the last couple of seasons Johnson hasn’t gone close to proving himself at the top level. “He needs to get back on the paddock – Mitch just has to start playing cricket again, he’s been off for about eight months now,” Mickey Arthur said on his return.
Pardon my ignorance Mr Arthur, but shouldn’t he be getting said match practice in English County cricket like fellow discards Usman Khawaja and Phil Hughes, and not on the international scene!?
Despite this, I do think that the appointment of Mickey Arthur of Head Coach will act as a saving grace for Johnson, previously working with one another in the Western Australian system. Last week Arthur gave Johnson a well-deserved wake up call, describing his recent comeback performances in England as “submissive, bullied and lacking character.”
Johnson himself said the description was correct. He knows he needs to reignite his once burning fire in his belly to bowl aggressively. Over the last couple of months, he has worked closely with Dennis Lillee who has advised him to work on his skill rather than pace.
“I’ve had him doing endurance running and sprinting and have technically remodelled a few things,” Lillee said. Since his comeback, Johnson has been noticeably more upright at the popping crease, intrinsically tightening his technique that has often been characterised by error.
With sheer weight of overs bowled, Johnson will kill the empty, overused term of ‘x-factor’ (what does that even mean?), and become the reliable spearhead Australia needs.
I don’t care if I’m the only one that backs Mitchell Johnson. Watching him switched on with both bat and ball is one of the most genuinely pleasing sights one sees on the cricket field. He will reignite his career with a return to top from and successfully lead a young Australian pace attack into next year’s Ashes.
TheGenuineTailender
Roar Guru
How we can persist with a bowler who cannot even stand the seam up-right and bowl a stock outswinger is well and truly beyond me. His place in the Australia A squad is a complete waste of another, younger player's opportunity to gain experience and exposure. The selectors need to just discard him now and move on with a look to the future.
Bee Bee
Guest
Johnson has XXXX-Factor. He bowls like he just drunk a six pack of XXXX.
Timmuh
Roar Guru
"X" marks a very large spot indeed. The difference was Harmy might come good (or at least not embarrassingly bad) later in a spell after launching a few half trackers to second slip without the batsman's interention. Mitch just keeps spraying it everywhere, hoping batsmen either chase one and toe-end it to gully; or don't play anything and are shocked into panic strokes when one is somewhere in the vicinity of off stump.
Disco
Roar Guru
Even Xavier Doherty doesn't have X-factor.
Disco
Roar Guru
Gillespie's been indoctrinated in the Hilditch/Punter/Nielsen playing-group speak.
Johnno
Guest
Flemo the bowlogilist has some X-Factor.
Osmond
Guest
Ed Cowan doesn't even have x-factor.
Osmond
Guest
Damien Fleming didn't have x-factor either.
Osmond
Guest
X-factor has never meant anything but erratic. Glenn McGrath didn't have x-factor. Shane Warne didn't have x-factor. Jason Gillespie didn't have x-factor. The best bowlers never do.
Disco
Roar Guru
Now I see Cowan's talking up Johnson. He surely is the golden boy.
dasilva
Guest
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCl7OhQ_IBA Damian Fleming did a pretty good sledge of Mitchell Johnson here as well.
murph73
Roar Rookie
Is that you Khoder? Philip Hughes cost Philip Hughes his place in the side.
Steve War
Guest
Maybe he can get an X Factor tattoo... Sorry Mitch, many others deserve a chance before you get yet another one I for one will argue that he doesn't belong on the international cricket stage at all. The quote "I think they wouldn’t put so much crap on me if they weren’t threatened,” is simply sad, deluded and pathetic Yawn
dasilva
Guest
No he is not that original. He is simply the successor of English bowler Steve Harmison. We were blessed to have two bowlers of the same ilk in this current generation. However the English were smart enough to stop picking him 3 years ago when he was 30 years old knowing he was past it. Funny enough recently Jason Gillespie who is now the first team coach of Yorkshire, believes Harmison has the "X-factor" as well. http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/player/14054.html It seems to me that x-factor just means erratic nowadays.
Dan
Guest
Ofcourse he's a once in a generation bowler He's the only bowler who can't hit the pitch!!! Please go away Mitchell Johnson -- Comment left via The Roar's iPhone app. Download The Roar's iPhone App in the App Store here.
Timmuh
Roar Guru
Sure, he can play in Tests - as soon as he shows the form in first clas cricket to warrant it. He had one good tour of South Africa, and that's about it. One good innings every eighteen months or so since does not make for a player deserving selection. Right at the moment he should not even be in discussions for international cricket, and possibly not Shield cricket most of the time.
Matt F
Roar Guru
The Johnson/Harmison graph is fantastic
jim_bar
Guest
great article about mitch over on "we'll have a bowl" blog that i read this morning, def worth a read http://haveabowl.blogspot.com.au/2012/07/can-we-expect-mitchell-johnson-to-get.html
Bayman
Guest
npjfagan, I have to say if ever I'm in a tight spot, e.g. backed into a corner by 1000 Indians having just yelled, "Sachin can't play", I'd like you with me. Your optimism wouldn't help but I reckon I'd feel better right up until the time they hammered me! You say, "I don’t care if I’m the only one that backs Mitchell Johnson" and I say "npj, when you're right, you're right". I don't even think Mitchell Johnson backs Johnson and that's part of his problem. He lacks confidence because he knows he has no idea how the ball gets from point A to point B. Didn't know then, doesn't know now. Johnson says all the right things, of course, but he just cannot deliver. Those media training courses must be worth something after all but we'd all prefer less talk and a bit more action. Johnson is, after all, 31 years old so the notion he might lead the attack for the next five years is a scary one - even if it were remotely possible. By then all of Starc, Cummins, Pattinson and even Siddle will be so far his superior it would not be funny - not to mention any number of others who may announce themselves in the next year or two. No, son, it's but a pipedream. This team needs a few things, that's for sure, but what it does not need is Mitchell Johnson. Not unless he discovers radar anytime soon. One thing, those who have read my various comments recently will know I don't put much store in stats for the sake of them. A case in point. You mention Johnson's ODI average of 25.22 and that seems ok until you realise that he only puts one ball an over anywhere near the batsman and that usually goes for four. It is fair to say, however, that the batsmen always have trouble laying any wood on him. So there's stats....and there's stats.
tonysalerno
Roar Guru
The 'X' stands for erratic in Johnson's case.