Mitchell Johnson announces retirement from all forms of cricket

Former Australian international Mitchell Johnson has announced his retirement from the sport. Johnson said that he hoped he would feature in various T20 leagues around the world but his 'body is starting to shut down'.

"It's over. I've bowled my final ball. Taken my final wicket. Today I announce my retirement from all forms of cricket," Johnson wrote for the Perth Now website.

"I had hoped to continue playing in various Twenty20 competitions around the world until perhaps the middle of next year. But the fact is my body is starting to shut down."

He went on to confirm that he won't be featuring for Perth Scorchers in the BBL as well.

"When I sat down with new Perth Scorchers coach Adam Voges recently to discuss my future, he was interested in me playing on again this summer. I did believe I could still be helpful around the playing group with my experience. But I think mentally I'm done as well," Johnson wrote.

"I'm ready to break clear of playing cricket and move on to the next period of my life. He has recently been through retiring himself and I think he understood that when you're done, you're done. If I can't play at 100 per cent then I can't give my best to the team. And for me it's always been about the team.

"My competitive urge hasn't left me and hopefully that's something I can use to channel into a coaching or mentoring role in the future. I'm a believer in sticking to your strengths and cricket is my strength," the left-armer added.

Talking about a possible future in coaching, Johnson said, "I don't know if I'll be any good at it. I've got a lot of experience in cricket and no experience in coaching officially, though I did help out at Wanneroo last summer and I've always enjoyed working with young players.

"I saw more highs and lows than most cricketers and I'm proud that I was able to fight back from adversity in the latter part of my career and produce consistent performances. I made mistakes and I learnt from them."