Reliving Mitchell Johnson's Ashes 2013/14 

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A match-winner

If anyone asks a learned cricket observer about the Ashes that was held in the scorching Australian summer of 2013/14, only a name would strike their mind. That name is Mitchell Johnson. They would probably fail to verbalize the level of dominance experienced by the fiery fast bowler, who absolutely demolished, destroyed and dismantled every Englishman's defence.

The Aussies not only beat England by a large margin, they ruled every department, teamed up with their fans and played with their opponent's minds. Through the generations, they have developed largely unbeatable ways of sledging their opposition. And if it's England on the other side, you know what's coming their way.

They completed their sheer supremacy in the series by whitewashing the Englishmen and claiming the prestigious Ashes urn. In four out of the five tests, they batted first. They emerged victorious in these matches by a margin of 381 runs, 218 runs, 150 runs and 281 runs. When they took the field first, the mighty Aussies defeated the Alastair Cook-led side by 8 wickets.

In a team game such as cricket, everyone needs to fulfill their roles and play a part. Very rarely would one witness a single player bamboozling the opponent in a way Johnson did. With hair cut-short, a daunting horseshoe mustache and muscular arms inked with tattoos, Mitchell Johnson struck fear in the batsman's mind and took the entire series by storm.

To be honest, it looked like he would take a wicket off every ball that he bowled - such was his rhythm and pace. Speaking of speeds, the left-arm pacer recorded 150kmph on a consistent basis throughout the series. The right blend of express fast bowling with a pinch of movement proved to be his biggest weapon.

Also to mention, his sharp bouncers troubled the English batsman, disturbed their stance and gave them nightmares on the crease. Probably, the chin music created by him still buzzes in some of those batsman's ears.

Here are some of the memorable Mitchell Johnson's performances:


#1 The start of something special

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A handy batsman

First Test, Day 1.

Australia's top-order failures had been scrutinized before the start of the series. The debacle repeated as the Baggie Greens were reduced to 153-6 at tea. Then came Mitchell Johnson, who as we all know was capable of hitting a long ball. He swerved the proceedings and constructed a much-needed partnership of 114 runs with Brad Haddin, for the seventh wicket.

In addition to his remarkable bowling performances, Johnson orchestrated many lower-order rescues along with Haddin and the rest of the tail. In fact, their average 7th wicket partnership in the series was 55.28, second only to the 6th wicket partnerships, which averaged 69.12.

In this innings, he scored 64 runs in 134 deliveries, with the help of 6 fours and a couple of maximums.

Hence, this was just the start of the storm. The two sessions on the first day of the first test at Brisbane were probably the only sessions where the visitors dominated in the entire series. Since then, it was all Mitchell Johnson.

#2 The pacesetter

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Terrifying!

First Test, Gabba.

He started off pretty inconsistently, leaking runs and not posing a real threat to the batsman. This encouraged the English fans to sing, "He bowls to the left, he bowls to the right..."

After changing ends in his second spell, he found the rhythm. He finished with 4-61 and 5-42 in both the innings. Johnson had found the right amount of bounce on the fresh-looking, hard Gabba track. He displayed 6-7 overs of serious short-pitched bowling.

He removed a well set Michael Carberry with a back-of-a-length delivery, that straightened a bit and found his outside edge. That was his first of many wickets in the series. His bouncers made it awkward for England's Mr. Dependable, Jonathan Trott. In fact, he was so tormented by such professional bowling that he chose to fly back home and remain out of the series. He was the architect of a middle-order collapse suffered by England.

Australians responded in excellent fashion in their reply to England's 136 by posting a mammoth total of 401-7. Johnson humiliated their chase by restricting them to 179, claiming five-fer. He sent Trott and Kevin Pietersen back to the dressing room with dangerous bouncers.

With 9 wickets and 103 runs in the test match, Mitchell Johnson silenced the Barmy Army and announced himself.

#3 The Johnson-Anderson battle

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A rare sight

As we've seen over the years, Johnson is not the one who hesitates to get one over another player. And this battle with Jimmy Anderson is one of the best the game has ever seen.

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"Why are you chirping now mate? Not getting wickets?" exclaimed Johnson, while Anderson was making adjustments in the field. The very next ball, England's king of swing yorked Ryan Harris.

But, you don't mess with an Aussie. You don't mess with the grit of Mitchell Johnson. In the second test, Johnson claimed 7 scalps for 40 runs. One of them was a wicket of Jimmy Anderson, whose middle stump was knocked out of the ground.

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It was more than just a wicket.

England were struggling at 135-8 when Anderson walked into bat. Johnson ran in hard, pitched it on a good length and beat Anderson's defence with a hint of inswing. What followed, is famously known as Johnson's stare-way to heaven. He didn't celebrate by exchanging words or with a fist-pump but only stared at Anderson to remind the Englishman of his class.

#4 7-40 in the first innings

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Second Test, Day 3.

The third day of the Adelaide test saw a remarkable bowling performance from Johnson. He hit the deck hard and produced notable amounts of swing and direction. Unlike Brisbane, he started off here in Adelaide with real intent, direction, and rhythm.

Much to his delight, he smashed the England captain's castle and bowled him over with a peach of a delivery.

After that, he ran riot over the English middle and lower-order, taking six more wickets in a single session, after lunch. He also took three wickets in one over. It all started with a wicket of Ben Stokes, who was beaten by pace. Clarke's decision to review the initial not-out decision proved to be the pendulum that swung momentum into Aussies' favor.

Within a short while, he dislodged the stumps of Stuart Broad, James Anderson, and Monty Panesar, assuring no nonsense from the tail. He pitched in the right areas and left the opposition's test match hanging by a thread.

#5 The story continues...

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Leaving a mark - From Brisbane to Melbourne

Fourth Test, Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Day 1 - England were sent into bat by Clarke and started off brightly, with Cook, Carberry, Root, and Pietersen producing starts. They hung around for a bit, spending a total of 586 minutes on the crease together. The match looked evenly poised on the day, as the Aussies picked up wickets at regular intervals, but couldn't manage to claim them in quick succession.

Johnson ran in hard on the final session, dismissing Stokes and Bairstow and thereby, giving Australia a slight edge on the first day. They went into Day 2 with 226 runs on board, but only managed to pile up 29 more.

Day 2 Without a shadow of a doubt, one would now know that Johnson ran through the lower order yet again. As expected, he picked up 5-63 in 24 overs.

Australia in reply managed only 204 runs. Their bowlers set the stage on fire once again, restricting the Englishmen to a 179 in their second innings. Nathon Lyon carved out a match-winning spell, but no one can keep Johnson out of the game, can they?

The fast bowler picked up the ball, released it quickly and ran Joe Root out. He picked up three wickets in this innings, adding to the five he had taken previously. Once again, he was awarded the man of the match accolade.

These were five special moments which highlight the domination of Mitchell Johnson in the 2013/14 Ashes, a series which he would call his own. He not only struck fear into the minds of English batsman but also raised the heartbeats of millions of passionate Australian fans.

Even decades and centuries ahead, his show in this Ashes series would be remembered by the entire world, as he scripted his name permanently into the record books. Here's my tribute to one of the most lethal bowlers in world cricket, who illuminated Australian cricket's rich history. Take a bow, Mitchell Guy Johnson.

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Edited by Amar Anand