Mitchell Johnson: AB de Villiers most difficult to bowl against

Mitchell Johnson is raring to bowl against AB de Villiers

After enjoying a successful World Cup campaign and playing an important role in Australia’s victory in the final, Mitchell Johnson is now looking to make a similar impact in IPL 2015. He will be leading the bowling attack of King XI Punjab and is looking forward to his duel against AB de Villiers when they take on RCB in the eighth edition of the cash-rich league.

Johnson hails de Villiers

The Australian left-arm pace bowler termed de Villiers as the best batsmen across formats and someone who is a 'formidable opponent'.

Resuming training on Tuesday, Johnson said: "I think the most difficult batsman to bowl to is AB de Villiers. He has been quite incredible in the last two years. He has excelled as the best player across most formats. For me, it has always been a challenge to bowl to AB and a lot of guys love the challenge of bowling to him. Having said that, any quality batsman can have a good day in the T20 format."

Johnson is playing the role of a senior bowler in the Kings XI team and is keen to help young Indian pacers develop and enhance their bowling skills. He has been impressed by his teammates Sandeep Sharma and Shardul Thakur, both of whom he feels are very proactive to learn the art of fast bowling.

"I played with Sandeep last year. It's great to work with him as he keeps getting better and better. I saw Sandeep yesterday at the nets. He’s got some good pace going.

"What I like about Sandeep is that, he is an easy guy to work with. He listens to what I am saying as I find it important for a youngster to be able to listen to what a senior guy is saying. I am also impressed with new guy Shardul," added Johnson, who has taken 41 wickets in the IPL so far.

Adaptability is key, says Johnson

Johnson, a tearaway quick and one of the best bowlers in the world at this moment, believes it is important to keep up with the pace of the modern game.

"I think if you are able to bowl 140 kph plus and pitch it in right areas, it will be difficult for any batsman to face that type of delivery. Well, the game has become fast and a lot of runs are being scored.

"In these scenario, a fast bowler needs to be smart and have a lot of change-ups. He should be able to bowl the yorkers. In the end, it's all about adapting to conditions," said the quick, who took 15 wickets in 9 games at the recently concluded ICC World Cup.