Things are heated with the first match of the Ashes this season down under. Pat Cummins’ fiery spell on the first day brought the fragile English batting lineup down to their knees, and from there on, it was an Australian show all over, barring the third-day fightback from Joe Root.
Amidst all this Test cricketing action, Cummins’ domination on the first day brought back the memories of one more Australian fast bowler who proved to be a nightmare for English batters not half a decade before. Yes, it is the unforgettable Mitchell Johnson whom we are talking about. No one involved in the 2013-14 Ashes season can forget what the left-arm pacer inflicted on England. So let’s look at what Mitchell Johnson presented in this coveted series over his playing years.
Ashes 2009 & 2010-11 season
After being the 12th man in the 2006 Ashes series, Johnson finally got his chance to shine in the 2009 series. However, his inexperience was visible, lacking control and consistency. Nevertheless, he grabbed 20 wickets at a strike rate of 48.65, a commendable performance for his first Ashes series appearance.
The next series (2010-11) was probably the hardest for Mitchell Johnson. With constant taunting from the Barmy Army, and his team suffering a humiliating defeat on their home ground, Johnson was the target of all the curse words. He had his worst Ashes economy rate and the bowling average in this series. However, he still went on to be the highest wicket-taker for Australia that season.
Ashes 2013-14: The Monster Unleashed
No one would have expected a man, who was not even selected in the first Ashes of 2013, to change the result of this series so drastically. Mitchell Johnson looked like a man on a mission from the break he received. Literally, in every match, he ruthlessly demolished the English batters, and the world got to witness the beauty of fast bowling.
He went on to take the most wickets (37) in the series at an average of 13.97. No pace bowler had such numbers in an Ashes series since 1981.
His strike rate of 30.59 is enough to tell the story of how the English team fell like a pack of cards. His economy rate of 2.74 proved to be his most economical Test series.
Ashes 2015: The decline
In his retiring year, Johnson again saw a dip in his form. With 15 wickets at a bowling average of 34.93, the Australian team was looking at a pale shadow of their ace bowler.
In terms of his strike rate of 56.07, that series was his worst performance. However, while the killer instinct he displayed in the previous series was missing, he was still clinical in the second match, helping his team level the series.
Career vs Ashes Performance
Mitchell Johnson’s International playing career comprised of unparallel domination and dismissible bowling displays. Out of his total Test matches, 24.28% comprises of his matches in Ashes, where he grabbed 27.79% of his total Test wickets, a testimonial to his overall success in the Ashes.
His Ashes economy rate of 3.57 was slightly higher than his career economy rate of 3.33 due to his lack of control with the ball in his initial outings in the Ashes. But on the other hand, his bowling average and strike rate saw a significant difference which goes on to prove why is he an Ashes legend.
Considering that two of the four Ashes series were poor outings, a bowling average of 25.81 and a strike rate of 43.2 solidifies the kind of impact he had in the remaining ones to drastically improve these numbers.