Ashes 2017-18: England will struggle mentally, says Mitchell Johnson

What’s the story?

Former Australian quick, Mitchell Johnson has fired a fresh salvo at the England cricket team ahead of the third Ashes Test.

"England will struggle mentally. You've got guys like Alastair Cook struggling. He can't find form. And I'd say he's thinking about retirement. He has played 150 Test matches; it's got to take it out of you," Johnson was quoted by ESPNCricinfo.

He also said that owing to a lot of distractions going on outside the field, the visitors are distracted and this is having an effect on their game.

The details

Then former quick who tormented England back in 2013-14 also said that the short ball strategy adopted by the hosts seems to make all the sense since they have Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, and Josh Hazlewood who have much better control and this has started to take a toll on the English mindset.

Speaking of Joe Root and his mindset, Johnson said that the English skipper does not look to be in the positive frame of mind with all the off-field distractions occupying his psyche.

In case you didn’t know…

England are trailing 2-0 in the ongoing Ashes series and many of their senior players have not looked comfortable so far in the series.

On the other hand, Australia seems to have all the answers and they have found different players at different times to bail them out of a corner.

What’s next?

The third Test match begins on December 14 in Perth and considering the wave of momentum Australia are riding at the moment, they are firm favourites to wrap up the series and win the urn.

Author’s take

Although Mitchell Johnson is known for a lot of blusters, his observation in the current context makes a lot of sense as at no point in the last two matches have the England batting looked sorted.

Also, with new off-field controversies erupting every other day, the squad seems to be in a defensive mindset, and Australia is one place where if you are bogged down, it becomes very difficult to bounce back!