The best of Mitch - 5 Best spells Mitchell Johnson

Mitchell Johnson has seemingly turned over a new leaf in the ongoing Ashes series. With 16 wickets in 3 innings, Johnson has started on the right track in writing his name into Ashes folklore. What started off as a reasonable morning for England turned into a nightmare thanks to a spell of devastation from Johnson. Here is a look at 5 outstanding spells that Johnson has bowled in his career so far, in no particular order(ODIs included)

1. 6/38 vs England at Perth, 2010

Mitchell Johnson

After he had made 62 in the first innings to take Australia to a respectable 268, Mitchell Johnson came out all guns blazing in the searing sunshine at the WACA. His control over reverse-swing proved to be a menace for the England batsmen, and provided Australia a rare high in an otherwise forgettable Ashes series. In one spell of devastation, Johnson destroyed the backbone of the English batting line-up, sending Alastair Cook, Kevin Pietersen, Jonathan Trott and Paul Collingwood back to the pavilion. It proved to be a match-winning spell, as a Mike Hussey century, and a Ryan Harris 6-for in the second innings ensured Australia won the test at the WACA and came back in the series, though the joy was short-lived.

2. 8/61 v South Africa at Perth, 2008

Mitchell Johnson

Johnson seems to have a liking for the WACA, doesn’t he? This spell against South Africa, was as good as you could see a bowler use the old ball. After Australia had made 375 in the first innings, South Africa were cruising along at 234/3, when Johnson decided to intervene. In the next 20 balls, he had figures of 5 wickets for 2 runs, as the star-studded South African batsmen had no answer to his pacy, late-swinging deliveries.

When you get Kallis, de Villiers and Duminy in the space of 20 balls, you’ve achieved something special, haven’t you?

3. 5/26 v India at Vadodara, 2007

Mitchell Johnson

Australia had gone into the game 2-1 up in the 7-match series and a win would see them take a comfortable lead in the series. Johnson chose the right time to take his first five-wicket haul in international cricket, as he made use of the early morning juice in the Baroda wicket with an impeccable spell of new ball bowling, and followed it up with a late burst to shoot out the tail. When you get Yuvraj, Uthappa and Dhoni within the first 10 overs, you win a game 9 times out of 10, and this game was no different.

4. 7/40 v England at Adelaide, 2013

Mitchell Johnson

After Michael Clarke and Brad Haddin had scored a century each to take Australia to 570, England were moving along with a few jitters at 117/4. When Johnson left his mark and swept a trail of devastation in his post-lunch spell, the score read 135/9. What we saw was fast, accurate, aggressive bowling, and a bowler making great use of the little help that was available in terms of reverse-swing. In a spell where he was twice on a hat-trick, Johnson ensured that Australia wrested control of the test match, and it is now almost certain that Australia will not lose and will, at the very least, keep up a 1-0 lead in the ongoing Ashes series.

5. 6/73 v New Zealand at Hamilton, 2010

Mitchell Johnson

With New Zealand set a mammoth 479 for victory, Australia were always favourites. And Mitchell Johnson ensured there were no surprises with a 6-for that enabled him to have a match haul of 10 wickets. More than the performance itslef, it was the circumstances under which they came, that would’ve made Johnson a happy man, because only 6 months prior to this series, he had endured a torrid time in the Ashes series that took place in England, where he was at his erratic best.