Mitchell Johnson: Of two seasons and one hemisphere

Mitchell Johnson was an unstoppable force for two seasons and in three countries.

England may have overcome some of the wounds of Ashes 2013-14. They have, after all, regained The Ashes this summer. The scars of that 0-5 whitewash, however, will continue to haunt some of the vanquished. The psychological trauma went beyond the scoreline, for not only were they humiliated, but were pulverised into submission by Michael Clarke’s men. David Warner and Chris Rogers contributed at the top, while Brad Haddin held the innings together; Michael Clarke and Steven Smith contributed with two hundreds each; and between them, the troika of Ryan Harris, Peter Siddle, and Nathan Lyon managed 57 wickets at 24.02. READ: Mitchell Johnson retires: Where does he rank among Australia’s pace pantheon?

But none of them hit England the way Mitchell Johnson did. With a horseshoe moustache that was a throwback to the 1970s, pace to match any contemporary fast bowler, and fire-spewing aggression that sent English batsmen running for cover, Johnson finished the series with 37 wickets at a ridiculous 13.97.

There was, however, more to it: English hearts sank when ‘Mitch’ ran in, for they always knew there was danger lurking around the corner. There was perhaps a hint of submission in the way they faced Johnson. Ask Jonathan Trott.

Johnson induced terror in batsmen in an era when heavy bats, flat pitches, small boundaries, and one batsman-friendly law after another pushed the sport away from the bowler. Bouncer barrages are not uncommon, but it was the way Johnson charged at them that made him look more ferocious than he probably was. England sunk without a trace.

It did not end there. Johnson carried his form to South Africa, where a rip-roaring spell, taking 3 wickets with his first 19 balls of the series. He tore the heart out of the South African line-up twice; his 7 for 68 and 5 for 59 tilted the Centurion Test in Australia’s favour. READ: Mitchell Johnson retires: A quiet end to a fine career

Once again there was a spectacular series: from 3 Tests Johnson had 22 wickets at 17.36. Australia beat the No. 1 ranked side at their den. That Antipodean summer had fetched him 59 wickets from 8 Tests at 15.23. He had taken a wicket every 32 balls.

This was not a first for Johnson. When South Africa ended Australia’s famous streak at home in 2008-09, Johnson claimed 17 wickets from 3 Tests including a career-best of 8 for 61. Add to that another 16 from 3 in South Africa and 14 from 2 against New Zealand at home, and Johnson’s home summer fetched him 47 wickets from 8 Tests at 21.14.

Barring Ricky Ponting, Johnson is the only cricketer to win ICC’s Player of the Year twice (as expected, in 2009 and 2014). But what about the rest of his career? Was it a tale of two seasons? READ: Retired Mitchell Johnson remained unpredictable till the end

Consider this: those two seasons in Australia and South Africa fetched Johnson 106 wickets from 16 Tests at 17.86; he took 217 more, from 65 Tests, at 33.81.

	M	W	Ave	SR	W/M
2008-09, Aus & SA	8	47	21.15	46.5	5.9
2013-14, Aus & SA	8	59	15.24	32.0	7.4
Combined	16	106	17.86	38.4	6.6
Rest of career	57	207	33.81	57.5	3.6
Career	73	313	28.41	51.0	4.3

Indeed, in these two ‘golden phases’, Johnson had snared 6.6 wickets per Test; for the rest of his career that dipped to 3.6. That is about half.

No, these are not small samples. It shows how unpredictable Johnson had been throughout his career. On his day he could wreck any side. But if he was not at his best, he was ordinary — more than perhaps met the eye.

While it has to do with those two seasons, Johnson has also thrived in Australia and South Africa (and two Tests in New Zealand). It will not be an exaggeration to call him a Southern Hemisphere legend! READ: Mitchell Johnson retires as one of Australia’s greatest tearaways

	M	B	R	W	Ave	SR	W/M
Northern Hemisphere	29	5,712	3,220	89	36.18	64.2	3.1
Southern Hemisphere	44	10,261	5,651	222	25.45	46.2	5.0
Career	73	15,973	8,871	311	28.52	51.4	4.3

Note: Johnson has not played Zimbabwe or Bangladesh, but he has played West Indies, both home and away. If one takes away Tests in West Indies away, he has taken 71 wickets from 24 Tests (less than 3 a Test); his average reads 38.37 and strike rate 67.3.

How good was the Ashes feat?

In the past 25 years, Shane Warne (40, in 2005) is the only bowler to have taken more wickets than Johnson in a single Ashes series. Of fast bowlers Glenn McGrath comes next (36, in 1997), but that was a 6-Test series. Craig McDermott’s 32 wickets in 1994-95, of course, came in five Tests. None of them have, however, matched Johnson’s feat since 1990.

Best averages in a single Ashes contest since 1990 (20 or more wickets):

Player	Season	M	W	Ave	SR	W/M
Mitchell Johnson	2013-14	5	37	13.97	30.5	7.4
Bruce Reid	1990-91	4	27	16.00	40.0	6.8
Glenn McGrath	2001	5	32	16.93	36.4	6.4
Stuart Clark	2006-07	5	26	17.03	44.8	5.2
Stuart MacGill	1998-99	4	27	17.70	41.1	6.8

Best strike rates in a single Ashes contest since 1990 (20 or more wickets):

Player	Season	M	W	Ave	SR	W/M
Mitchell Johnson	2013-14	5	37	13.97	30.5	7.4
Glenn McGrath	2001	5	32	16.93	36.4	6.4
Shane Warne	2001	5	31	18.70	37.8	6.2
Shane Warne	2005	5	40	19.92	37.9	8.0
Bruce Reid	1990-91	4	27	16.00	40.0	6.8

Note: The Englishmen are absent on the above lists. For England, Stuart Broad tops both lists. In 2015 he had 21 wickets from 5 Tests at an average of 20.90 and a strike rate of 41. READ: PHOTO: Mitchell Johnson given Guard of Honour by New Zealand

Take away that series, however, and the contrast is remarkable:

	M	W	Ave	SR	W/M
Ashes 2013-14	5	37	13.97	30.6	7.4
Other Ashes series	14	50	34.58	52.7	3.6
Ashes career	19	87	25.82	43.3	4.6

Indeed, outside the series, the numbers have been average, by any standards.

The diverse dude

Despite his strange career pattern, Johnson has been outstanding against South Africa, the toughest opposition of his times, with 64 wickets from 12 Tests at 25.64 and a strike rate of 49.5. Of fast bowlers only Syd Barnes (89) and Brian Statham (69) have more wickets against them, but they played against much weaker South African sides.

Johnson is tied at third place with Javagal Srinath. Since South Africa’s readmission, the closest to Johnson and Srinath have been McGrath and James Anderson (57 each).

Best averages by fast bowlers vs South Africa since readmission (40 or more wickets):

	M	W	Ave	SR	W/M
Courtney Walsh	10	51	19.80	55.4	5.1
Javagal Srinath	13	64	24.48	51.7	4.9
Mitchell Johnson	12	64	25.64	49.5	5.3
Chris Martin	14	55	26.72	49.6	3.9
Glenn McGrath	17	57	27.33	71.6	3.4

Best strike rates by fast bowlers vs South Africa since readmission (40 or more wickets):

	M	W	Ave	SR	W/M
Mitchell Johnson	12	64	25.64	49.5	5.3
Chris Martin	14	55	26.72	49.6	3.9
Javagal Srinath	13	64	24.48	51.7	4.9
Courtney Walsh	10	51	19.80	55.4	5.1
Brett Lee	14	50	34.64	62.4	3.6

Indeed, South Africa have faced the wrath of Johnson over time. But how has he done in South Africa since their readmission?

Best averages by overseas fast bowlers in South Africa since readmission (30 or more wickets):

	M	W	Ave	SR	W/M
Glenn McGrath	9	35	22.14	61.6	3.9
Waqar Younis	9	41	25.02	44.9	4.6
Mitchell Johnson	8	41	25.29	47.9	5.1
Javagal Srinath	12	58	26.53	56.9	4.8
Chris Martin	12	38	29.73	56.1	3.2

Best strike rates by overseas fast bowlers in South Africa since readmission (30 or more wickets):

	M	W	Ave	SR	W/M
Waqar Younis	9	41	25.02	44.9	4.6
Mitchell Johnson	8	41	25.29	47.9	5.1
Chris Martin	12	38	29.73	56.1	3.2
Zaheer Khan	11	43	31.39	56.2	3.9
Javagal Srinath	12	58	26.53	56.9	4.8

It is obvious that few have matched Johnson’s exploits against South Africa, home or away: but what about Asia? READ: Mitchell Johnson retires: Twitter reacts to fiery pacer’s emotional goodbye

Worst averages by non-Asian fast bowlers in Asia since 1990 (30 or more wickets):

Player	M	W	Ave	SR	W/M
Mitchell Johnson	12	33	40.36	80.0	2.8
Stuart Broad	13	31	39.45	83.5	2.4
Makhaya Ntini	18	48	34.52	66.8	2.7
Morne Morkel	16	39	33.79	65.8	2.4
Michael Kasprowicz	11	31	33.77	73.6	2.8

Worst strike rates by non-Asian fast bowlers in Asia since 1990 (30 or more wickets):

Player	M	W	Ave	SR	W/M
Stuart Broad	13	31	39.45	83.5	2.4
Mitchell Johnson	12	33	40.36	80.0	2.8
Michael Kasprowicz	11	31	33.77	73.6	2.8
Andrew Flintoff	14	46	29.58	67.5	3.3
Makhaya Ntini	18	48	34.52	66.8	2.7

Quite the other end of the spectrum, is it not? But then, that has been the story of Johnson’s career — of mysterious, inexplicable highs and lows across space and time. Mathematicians should be happy. READ: Mitchell Johnson retires: Sachin Tendulkar wishes former Mumbai Indians team-mate

(Abhishek Mukherjee is the Chief Editor at CricketCountry and CricLife. He blogs here and can be followed on Twitter here.)

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