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Mitchell Johnson has blamed a text message from David Warner for triggering his scathing attack on his former Australia cricket teammate.
A furious Johnson wrote in his column for The West that Warner has not “deserved a hero’s dismissal” this summer despite the leadoff hitter’s long and decorated career.
The comment has opened old wounds between the pair, after Johnson had previously called for Warner to be removed from the Test side during The Ashes, held by Australia earlier this year.
Warner intends to retire from Test cricket with a farewell match at the SCG in January in the New Year’s match against Pakistan.
However, Johnson says Warner does not deserve a staged send-off due to his central role in the 2018 sandpaper scandal that dragged the name of Australian cricket into ignominy.
Johnson said a text message from Warner had set the platform for his attack in his column in The West.
Warner has made it clear that he wants the New Year’s Test at the SCG to be his last match for Australia in the long form of the game.
Warner and Johnson were teammates, pictured here on a charity day during the 2015 Ashes.
However, Johnson revealed that the motivation for his uncompromising column was not just the beginning of the issue, but an acid-tinged text message that Warner sent his former teammate in April.
“I got a message from Dave which was quite personal and I tried to call him to talk to him about it,” Johnson said on The Mitchell Johnson Cricket Show podcast.
“It was never personal then, until that moment. That is what prompted me to write the article or also part of it. It’s definitely a factor. Some of the things you mentioned in that message.
‘I won’t say it because it’s up to Dave to say if he wants to talk about it. There were some things in there that were extremely disappointing, what he said, and pretty bad to be honest. “That was kind of a driver.”
Johnson doesn’t think Warner deserves a hero’s farewell for his role in Sandpapergate
Johnson said it was not personal and that he had also written positive columns about Warner in the past.
Johnson also lashed out at chief selector George Bailey in his column, suggesting he was too close to the playing group to make tough decisions and questioning why WA paceman Lance Morris was resting from Sheffield Shield games.
‘He had messaged me after Lance Morris’ article. It was a little condescending. Typical George stuff. “When you get it at odd hours of the morning, it’s disappointing,” Johnson said.
Johnson also doubled down on his attacks on Warner on the podcast.
“It feels like it fits. The selectors have talked about picking guys who are fit,” Johnson said.
‘If you look at David’s form, because the article is about him. His form in England was not very good. So in a way, you don’t choose someone who is fit.
I have also written good articles about David. I have always said that I am a very different thinker. I am not a traditional cricketer. I didn’t play much when I was young. I didn’t grow up with it as much as others. I always questioned things and had a different thought process.
‘And it probably bothered me to get a message from him (Bailey) at odd hours of the morning and he didn’t show the respect of making a phone call. That’s pretty much it.’
Johnson was unhappy that national chief selector George Bailey did not call him and apparently questioned his mental health.
Johnson also addressed Bailey’s public response by saying, “I hope he (Johnson) is okay.”
Johnson took that response as an inquiry into his past mental health issues.
“Asking if I’m okay (by George Bailey) because I’ve had mental health issues is largely downplaying my article and focusing it on mental health, which is pretty disgusting,” he said.
‘I’m fine. I’m not angry. I’m not jealous. I’m just writing a piece that I felt I needed to write.
“Basically, digging into someone’s mental health and saying something must be going on, a mental health issue, has made me say what I’ve said.” That’s not the truth.’
James Erskine, Warner’s agent, called Johnson’s tirade “a little sad” and defended his client’s career, despite his role in encouraging the use of hidden sandpaper to illegally alter the ball during a series of tests. in South Africa in 2018, which resulted in a lengthy suspension from the sport and a tearful apology.
‘Mitchell Johnson was a good player… and he has the right to his opinion. But in the end what surprises me is all these former cricketers who basically have a chance with the current group,” he said on SEN’s Sportsday.
‘It’s a bit sad in a way. I’m sure they have an opinion but I think it’s to get a headline.
‘If anyone listening thought David Warner wanted to play Test cricket for Australia if they didn’t think he was ready for it, they were wrong. He’s been a fighter all his life, he’s a guy from the wrong side of the tracks, he’s a guy who has made a living and been very successful at it.
“But he doesn’t want a swan song, he thinks he’s the best guy for the job.” I think the figures show it.’
Former Australia Test captain Tim Paine felt Johnson had gone too far in criticizing Warner.
“Some of his points about his (Warner’s) stats and his position on the team and the fact that he got a little bit of overtime were probably ruined by the personal nature of it,” Paine said.
And put sandpaper on it again. And to say that David is a person who used his leadership role to gain power. I played with David and he certainly didn’t do that.
‘I thought the article was pretty good. There were a lot of questions that people wanted to ask and that generated a lot of interest and a lot of reflection, even from someone like me.
‘I thought I had gone too far on some things and it ruined everything for me. The George thing seemed a little unnecessary to me.
Michael Clarke, who captained both players when they were on the national team together, said there was no antagonism between them while he was captain.
“Dave is a strong character, Mitch is a strong character, (they) attacked each other hard in the nets,” Clarke said.
“I saw that, but I couldn’t sit here and say they had problems with each other when we played.”
Clarke stressed the importance of former players with media jobs being able to speak their minds, but suggested Johnson should offer an apology if Warner was hurt by his comments.
“When you’re in a (media) role like this, if you have an opinion and it’s based on what’s best for the team, I think you should accept that, but it should never be personal, or I try not to.” “It’s personal, and if it feels that way to you, I guess you’re trying to apologize because you don’t mean it.”