Mitchell Johnson savages Cricket Australia over staggering awards night development
The Aussie cricket great was left baffled by his invitation in light of the fact he'd had two speaking engagements cancelled.
Mitchell Johnson has lashed out at Cricket Australia for inviting him to its annual awards night, just two weeks after they stood him down from speaking engagements before the first Test. It came to light this week that Cricket Australia had decided Johnson would no longer be required to speak at a number of events in Perth before the match against Pakistan, due to his inflammatory comments about David Warner.
The governing body thought it would be in everyone's best interests to stand Johnson down after his comments about Warner got too personal. But the situation got even weirded on Friday when the fast-bowling great revealed he had been invited to the Cricket Australia Awards in the New Year.
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"Is Cricket Australia serious??," he wrote on Instagram alongside a screenshot of his invitation. "Last week I was cancelled from two speaking engagements. This week I'm invited to celebrate with them."
The Australia Cricket Awards were formerly called the Allan Border Medal, which Johnson won in 2014. The Allan Border Medal is still presented to the best male player of the year, although the name of the ceremony has been changed to mark the recognition of female players.
Why Mitchell Johnson was stood down by Cricket Australia
Shedding more light on the situation around Johnson this week, leading journalist Robert Craddock said he was "muzzled" by CA to avoid any more drama. “I believe it was Cricket Australia’s call, however, I do believe it was done to short circuit any chance that the players would blow up about it,” Craddock said on SEN radio.
“I didn’t think they would have, I really don’t. I don’t even think they’d have found out about it. There’s so much happening in a Test match with speakers coming and going that if Mitchell Johnson comes in a room (the players wouldn’t know).
“The other thing about Johnson is don’t underestimate his smartness and sensibilities, to be able to read the room and say, ‘I stand by what I said, but I got a bit personal and I regret that’. Some people call that entertainment. We live in a world in such political correctness.”
Cricket 'taking itself too seriously' with Mitchell Johnson saga
Craddock said cricket “takes itself a little bit too seriously”, wheres other codes would have embraced the drama. “Mitchell Johnson of course had a volcanic column criticising David Warner and George Bailey,” he added.
“Had it just been on stats and limited to man versus stats, it would have been fair enough. But it became a little bit personal so Cricket Australia through it was a bad look to then celebrate Johnson by having him as a guest at two functions in Perth.
“Had this been rugby league, the organisers of the functions would have said, ‘How good is this, geez I hope he fires up’, because what I love about that sport is it just survives on bushfires which keep burning and everyone gets the narrative. There’s players swapping clubs, there’s a bit of feuding, there’s a bit of drama, but in the end it doesn’t mean too much and it’s all part of the soap opera of sport. Cricket, I always feel, falls a little bit short-changed in that regard. It takes itself a little bit too seriously.”
Johnson had questioned why Warner was in the Test team at all, let alone dictating when he planned to retire. Warner responded with a masterful knock of 164 in the first innings of the Perth Test, which Australia won by 360 runs. Warner is planning to walk away from red-ball cricket after the Sydney Test in January.
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