Johnson tips Mitchell Starc for future full of records
Former Australian speedster Mitchell Johnson believes that Mitchell Starc, the leader of his team's bowling attack, is coming of age and will only turn out to be an even bigger dominating force in the near future.
Starc had a breakthrough tour of Sri Lanka last month and ended the series with 24 wickets, the most by any Australian fast-bowler in a three-match Test series. It was the only bright patch in what was a miserable series for his team - who were eventually whitewashed by a 3-0 margin. Starc put the disappointment aside and later became the fastest bowler to claim 100 One Day International (ODI) wickets, when he dismissed Dhananjaya de Silva in the first ODI at R Premadasa stadium, Colombo.
Having recovered completely from a broken bone in his foot - which kept him out of action for a period of six months, the left-arm quick has returned with a vengeance and has tormented batsmen across all formats of the game.
"I watched a bit of the Sri Lanka Test series and it was quite disappointing, the boys didn't bat that well, they all know that," Johnson told cricket.com.au on Wednesday (September 14) in Perth at a function to mark 50 days until the start of the Commonwealth Bank Test series against South Africa at the WACA ground.
"But it was really exciting to see Mitchy Starc perform well. I thought he was close when we went over to England for that (2015) Ashes series, and he wasn't quite there. But he's shown after his injury he's really committed to working really hard," the former pacer added.
Johnson has seen the phenomenal rise of Starc, having been part of the same eleven, on more than one occasion and believes he has it in him to be Australia's match-winner during the summer. "I've kept in touch with him and he was really positive going into that series. To be the leading wicket-taker in Sri Lanka in those conditions was really positive and a good step forward," the former pacer said.
"He can dominate again. On wickets that will provide bounce with his height, it's going to be very difficult (to face him). He's still pretty fresh in Test cricket and he's only going to get better. He's going to keep breaking records I think as well. It's really exciting," he added.
Johnson was particularly keen on watching Starc bowl at the WACA - a pitch which is known to provide assistance for the pace bowlers. "He bowls a fuller ball, he definitely gets the ball up there, and especially on a wicket like the WACA where you can get good bounce, it's really vital to be up there. He'll swing the ball when he pitches the ball up," Johnson said.
While Starc can demonise batsmen with raw pace, his ability to deliver toe-crushing yorkers has stood him ahead of his peers. Johnson says it is this quality which will hold significance for the 26-year old New South Wales southpaw. "That yorker he's got is very dangerous, and he's always working to improve his game," he said.
Australia begin their their summer with a three-Test series against South Africa, a team they haven't beaten at home since 2005-06, and have lost their last two meetings at home. South Africa have slipped from their heydays though, losing their number one Test rank after crushing defeats in India and against England at home. However, they have shown signs of getting back to their best in recent times, their dismantling of New Zealand at Centurion recently, proving a point or two.
Johnson cautioned Australia against underestimating their opponents despite their recent failings, which have seen them slip to number five in the recent International Cricket Council's (ICC) rankings. "Coming up against South Africa at the start (of the summer) is really going to test Australia," Johnson said.
"South Africa are going through a bit of a change at the moment, but there are a few guys that have come back into really good form. Dale Steyn's back in form, Morne (Morkel) is floating around there and they've got a great batting line-up as always.
"Australia have always competed very hard against them, in same sort of conditions they have back home. They're used to these sort of conditions," he concluded.
Starc had a breakthrough tour of Sri Lanka last month and ended the series with 24 wickets, the most by any Australian fast-bowler in a three-match Test series. It was the only bright patch in what was a miserable series for his team - who were eventually whitewashed by a 3-0 margin. Starc put the disappointment aside and later became the fastest bowler to claim 100 One Day International (ODI) wickets, when he dismissed Dhananjaya de Silva in the first ODI at R Premadasa stadium, Colombo.
Having recovered completely from a broken bone in his foot - which kept him out of action for a period of six months, the left-arm quick has returned with a vengeance and has tormented batsmen across all formats of the game.
"I watched a bit of the Sri Lanka Test series and it was quite disappointing, the boys didn't bat that well, they all know that," Johnson told cricket.com.au on Wednesday (September 14) in Perth at a function to mark 50 days until the start of the Commonwealth Bank Test series against South Africa at the WACA ground.
"But it was really exciting to see Mitchy Starc perform well. I thought he was close when we went over to England for that (2015) Ashes series, and he wasn't quite there. But he's shown after his injury he's really committed to working really hard," the former pacer added.
Johnson has seen the phenomenal rise of Starc, having been part of the same eleven, on more than one occasion and believes he has it in him to be Australia's match-winner during the summer. "I've kept in touch with him and he was really positive going into that series. To be the leading wicket-taker in Sri Lanka in those conditions was really positive and a good step forward," the former pacer said.
"He can dominate again. On wickets that will provide bounce with his height, it's going to be very difficult (to face him). He's still pretty fresh in Test cricket and he's only going to get better. He's going to keep breaking records I think as well. It's really exciting," he added.
Johnson was particularly keen on watching Starc bowl at the WACA - a pitch which is known to provide assistance for the pace bowlers. "He bowls a fuller ball, he definitely gets the ball up there, and especially on a wicket like the WACA where you can get good bounce, it's really vital to be up there. He'll swing the ball when he pitches the ball up," Johnson said.
While Starc can demonise batsmen with raw pace, his ability to deliver toe-crushing yorkers has stood him ahead of his peers. Johnson says it is this quality which will hold significance for the 26-year old New South Wales southpaw. "That yorker he's got is very dangerous, and he's always working to improve his game," he said.
Australia begin their their summer with a three-Test series against South Africa, a team they haven't beaten at home since 2005-06, and have lost their last two meetings at home. South Africa have slipped from their heydays though, losing their number one Test rank after crushing defeats in India and against England at home. However, they have shown signs of getting back to their best in recent times, their dismantling of New Zealand at Centurion recently, proving a point or two.
Johnson cautioned Australia against underestimating their opponents despite their recent failings, which have seen them slip to number five in the recent International Cricket Council's (ICC) rankings. "Coming up against South Africa at the start (of the summer) is really going to test Australia," Johnson said.
"South Africa are going through a bit of a change at the moment, but there are a few guys that have come back into really good form. Dale Steyn's back in form, Morne (Morkel) is floating around there and they've got a great batting line-up as always.
"Australia have always competed very hard against them, in same sort of conditions they have back home. They're used to these sort of conditions," he concluded.
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