Mitchell Johnson says he is ready to fire in the Big Bash League
Australian pacer Mitchell Johnson says he is gearing up to fire on all cylinders in the upcoming season of the Big Bash League (BBL) where he will be representing the Perth Scorchers.The left-arm pacer received offers from many other BBL franchises but says he always wanted to wear the Scorcher jersey. He penned the deal with the club on Tuesday.
Astonishingly, the 34-year-old has never featured in a BBL match for the last five years as he was busy plying his trade for the national side. He comes into this season without much match practice as he played just three IPL games since quitting Test matches last November. However, Johnson is still quite confident he has the pace and accuracy to trouble world class batsmen.
"In the IPL, in the nets, I was bowling good pace. The guys were jumping around, which was good," Johnson was quoted by cricket.com.au. "As soon as I get a sniff of the bounce, I get pretty fired up.”
The fast bowler also revealed he has got a text from former national team colleague Michael Hussey to not give an inch and go hard on the youngsters."I got a text from Mike Hussey just saying, 'Give it to the young blokes, don't give an inch'. So he wants me to go pretty hard as well."
Also Read: Mitchell Johnson pens deal with Perth Scorchers for BBL season 6
Johnson is also set to become a hero at the WACA following the exit of fan favourite Brad Hogg who has signed for the Melbourne Renegades and hopes to have a friendly banter with the Chinaman bowler whenever they meet on the field."I'm not quite his age," Johnson joked of 45-year-old Hogg.
"Every time I come up against him in the IPL, he'd say, 'I'll leave my stumps open, you just aim at the stumps'. And I used to say, 'Mate, I can't hit the stumps, I'm following wherever you go'. It's a little bit disappointing he's gone but it's a business." Johnson presently has signed a one-year deal with the club but added he can extend it if he finds the tenure entertaining.
"A lot of the guys talk about how entertaining it is and how much fun they have playing it," Johnson said. "So you never know. I might actually really enjoy it and want to play a bit more.”
The veteran pacer has played in 82 T20 domestic games and picked up 94 wickets. In T20 internationals he has 38 wickets from 30 matches.