Johnson spells trouble for Kiwis at lively Waca
MITCHELL Johnson’s fearsome reputation on what has been termed the fastest pitch on the planet looms as a big threat to New Zealand chasing a serieslevelling win in the second Test starting here tomorrow.
Johnson ranks second only to Glenn McGrath (52) for most wickets taken at the pacey Western Australian Cricket Association (Waca) ground and along with fellow left-arm quick Mitchell Starc represents a hostile new-ball attack for the Australians.
Steve Smith’s team are coming off a resounding 208-run first Test win at Brisbane’s Gabba, which also ranks among world cricket’s fastest pitches.
Waca groundskeeper Matt Page is promising a pitch conducive to the speedsters and given New Zealand’s indifferent bowling performance in Brisbane, where they leaked 820 runs for just eight wickets, it spells trouble for the Kiwis. “There will be some pace and bounce for the quick guys, absolutely. We’ll see a result,” he said.
Johnson has taken 42 wickets at an average of 20.19 in his six Test matches at the Waca, with his finest moment coming in 2008, when he snared a career-best 8/61 against SA.
Smith, who is fast putting his stamp on the Australian team he inherited this year from Michael Clarke, is demanding more from his quicks, despite the Brisbane mauling, which was spearheaded by twin centuries from man of the match David Warner.
“I thought our new ball bowling needs a bit of improvement. We bowled a little bit too short,” Smith said.
“I think that is going to be important for us leading into Perth, which are probably going to be similar conditions.” The Waca pitch still has to be assessed but both sides may be tempted to go with four pacemen, although off-spinner Nathan Lyon is a key member of the Australian attack.
The Kiwis will have to make a decision on pace spearhead Tim Southee, who bowled only in the first innings in Brisbane because of back problems.
“I thought Tim started to come right pretty quickly, which is a good sign,” Kiwi skipper Brendon McCullum said. “We’ll give him every chance. He’s one of our leaders, an outstanding bowler and showed in the first innings he will pose a lot of questions for them.”
Temperatures are expected to reach 37°C during the second Test and the Waca has produced a result in each of its last eight Tests, with Australia winning five of those contests, including a 150run win over England in 2013.