Mitchell Johnson

[aussierulesrules]

Steve O'Keefe
Mitch Starc
James Pattinson
Josh Hazelwood

I maintain that long term our attack looks pretty promising. It's a question of when we want to blood the above players, but surely with the way our attack has been going it can't hurt to take this group to future test tours and blood them in turn.

It's extremely promising, especially when you also include Copeland and James Faulkner in that batch. It's probably the most promising young batch I've seen come through in my lifetime (and maybe by a long way), but we need to be patient with them, or we could do to them what we've done to Phil Hughes. Their time will come.

 

[Cousin Jed]

Be nice guys. Our beloved mod Cousin Jed is still trying to swim his way out of there.

I was smart enough to get out already...

 

[Radical Roo]

the series in SA must contain Siddle and Johnson cos these 2 players are the ones that SA are scared of.

 

[mattymac]

the series in SA must contain Siddle and Johnson cos these 2 players are the ones that SA are scared of.

what, scared they'll have to bat for three days?

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

Mitchell Johnson only started to show really eratic signs after the arguement with his mother b4 the 09 ashes. Johnson b4 the 09 ashes was a bowler who averages around 3.5 in terms of economy rates. So b4 09 ashes, johnson was strike bowler material. He is still ****ed up in his mind.

Not entirely true. He was erratic before going to South Africa as well, but fixed (to my eyes at least) an issue in his run where his non-bowling arm was flapping around all over the place and leaving him off balance in the delivery stride. And then erratic bowling returned with the issue with his mother.
One good Test in 20 months is not good enough however. He needs to go until he gets some consistency, and his bad bowling is not as bad as it is now. Everyone has bad spells, even bad matches, but few are as bad as his off days - and if he has one bad spell, that's it for the match, he never bounces back.
He might be an occasional match winner, but more often he is a deadset match loser.

 

[Tyberious Funk]

Psst...it's up north.

Well, if I were Marcus, I'd get that removed

Might explain his lack of runs.

 

[Stats Man]

bump.. an underwhelming tour of SL..

 

[Phone]

as long as Siddle and MJ contiune to play together our bowling attack will be shit. one has to go. you'd have to be leaning towards saying goodbye to MJ at this stage.

yeah pretty chill with this post. although i'm not quite sure when I changed to siddle should go. probably after the wc.

MJ wasted his awesome performance of the tour on an ODer....he'll learn from this.

 

[Ill Chicken]

IMO, if the side is to progress, Johnson has to be dropped from the Test team. He's had two outstanding series (both vs RSA), and the occasional Halley's Comet moment either side. His batting is, generally, more reliable than his bowling. The excuse is that he is a wicket taker. But at what cost?

How can any international side take a bowler like Johnson into their attack for a five-day match? With all due respect to him, how could the Punter ever really know what he'll get from one of his strike bowlers (now also his most experienced)?

X-factor shmex-factor. Give us three quality, consistent pacemen at a minimum (leaving room for one more quality, consistent paceman or a promising spinner aka Beer), and we will hold our own at the bowling crease.

Everyone seems to love Johnson, and he seems like a nice guy. I enjoy watching him bat, he is very technically correct. But he can't land two balls in the same spot. And he made his Test debut in Oct. 2007. It is now Jan. 2011.

There is nothing consistent about Johnson's batting.

His lack of bowlilng discipline is an obvious concern and usually I'd agree but you can't drop for an away tour of South Africa considering what he did there last time and considering that the conditions almost perfectly suit his bowling and his height makes him an even more threatening bowler over there.

Considering what he did there last time? He had form backing him last time, he doesn't have any this time.

Mitchell Johnson only started to show really eratic signs after the arguement with his mother b4 the 09 ashes. Johnson b4 the 09 ashes was a bowler who averages around 3.5 in terms of economy rates. So b4 09 ashes, johnson was strike bowler material. He is still ****ed up in his mind.

Mitchell Johnson has always been wayward, they expected him to mature by now, he hasn't, has to go or at the very least be a Kaspa/Lee/Bichel and run the drinks most of the time while playing the odd test.

Edit: thought this was a new thread..

 

[damochandler]

siddle is only in for harris. once harris is fit siddle will be out. bring pattinson in for johnson

 

[Bucking Beads]

They should have just told him to bowl fast and stop worrying about technique. The time for fixing his techniques has been gone for a long time. Will most likely get a game in South Africa but if he fails that should be the end of him.

 

[frankrizzo]

if all the bowlers are fit it's hard to see how anybody could consider johnson to be one of our top 3 quicks right now.

I don't think his test career is over but right now he isn't bowling well enough to be in the starting 11, he is living on this "xfactor" hype and his performance against south africa which was nearly 3 years ago now.

 

[raff23]

his batting has become terrible as well, if he was making runs than there would be a reason to keep him in the side but he hasnt made consistent runs really for 2 years now. Is hanging on by a thread imo.

 

[Dragz]

Yep, another player hanging by a thread really. If we had a stable bowling lineup who could take wickets, you could keep him in the team, but we don't, so I'd like to send him back to the Sheffield Shield. Time we started to bring in the guys who are performing at that level. Bowlers and Batsmen.

 

[no_remorse28]

Definitely agree he should be the first to have to play some shield cricket. Building the attack around him will help, but he is not that good a strike bowler that we should be building a side around him. He seems to know he is struggling and it reflects in his body language, Mcdermott to me might be able to sort him out, if not its hard to keep playing him when he is struggling to take wickets or make runs. Its a shame he cant swing a ball naturally, when ever he gets assistance here he is devastating.

 

[no_remorse28]

http://www.espncricinfo.com/sri-lanka-v-australia-2011/content/current/story/533233.html

Clarke on Johnson and the bowling outfit.

 

[mattymac]

he implies in that interview that its between johnson and siddle. as it should be.

i'm not a fan of how clarke talks things over the top like warney. "i still think MJ is as good a strike weapon as there is in international cricket" or khawaja "batted like a genius all series". doesn't do anyone any favours pissing in their ear

 

[DaRick]

he implies in that interview that its between johnson and siddle. as it should be.

i'm not a fan of how clarke talks things over the top like warney. "i still think MJ is as good a strike weapon as there is in international cricket" or khawaja "batted like a genius all series". doesn't do anyone any favours pissing in their ear

It's the 'back 'em in public, blast 'em in private' trick. Having a go at a player in public may work for more egotistical players, but it wouldn't work for Johnson, I don't think.

 

[mattymac]

It's the 'back 'em in public, blast 'em in private' trick. Having a go at a player in public may work for more egotistical players, but it wouldn't work for Johnson, I don't think.

dunno. maybe he just has a penchant for hyperbole. another gem: "tim nielsen has done an amazing job for australia". surely thats not meant to be taken literally. a devilish code perhaps?

 

[Ill Chicken]

Johnson just needs to buy Lee's patented chainsaw wicket celebration and everything will be okay.

 

[Texas Smith]

Interesting to see the developments in this thread.

What's the call on Johnson these days?

 

[Stats Man]

Great thread. Look at LTD go.

Johnson has never been that good. Never known a cricketer to get so many chances

 

[james brayshaw]

Great thread. Look at LTD go.

Johnson has never been that good. Never known a cricketer to get so many chances

...what? his best was absolutely brilliant

 

[mattymac]

If he looks good in ads he'll be fine. A certain other paceman threw pies for half a decade and only got dropped once.

prophetic

 

[Dixie Flatline]

Great thread. Look at LTD go.

Johnson has never been that good. Never known a cricketer to get so many chances

At his peak, Johnson was unplayable by even the best batsmen in the world.

It's just too bad his peak lasted basically one summer test series and he's been declining ever since.

He gets chances because there's nobody else in Australia that can replicate what Johnson has shown he's capable of doing, and the selectors are hoping he can find the lightning in the bottle one more time.