Retired paceman will assess his future in T20 competitions after IPL return, while he expects to gain pace as IPL wears on
IPL to determine Johnson's T20 future
Former Australia fast bowler Mitchell Johnson says his experience in the Indian Premier League will determine whether he continues his cricketing career as a Twenty20 gun for hire.
Johnson made his cricket return for Kings XI Punjab following his international retirement last November, playing in their first two IPL outings before being left out of the XI which defeated Rising Pune Supergiants on Sunday.
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The left-arm quick, who confessed in February he would “love” to play for the Perth Scorchers in next summer's KFC Big Bash League, said his IPL9 experience would decide whether he pursued opportunities in any number of other domestic Twenty20 competitions worldwide.
"I’m still deciding on where I want to take my career at this stage,” Johnson wrote in a column for News Corp.
"I really want to see how I feel throughout this tournament. If it feels right then I’ll start to look at playing Twenty20 cricket around the world and then it’s just about planning what tournaments I want to play in.
"There are a few to choose from now.”
The 34-year-old, who has figures of 0-28 and 1-35 from his two matches, said while he felt his pace was down after several months away from the game, he expected that to improve rapidly as the tournament wears on.
"I actually feel fine having returned to competitive cricket after a long time off,” he said.
"I’m a little bit stiff and sore but I think the more I bowl the better I get. I’ve always felt that way. That’s why I’ve always enjoyed playing the longer form.
"I feel pretty good and once I get a bit more bowling in I’ll feel much better.
"My pace is probably down a little bit, but once I get a bit more rhythm I’ll feel fine. I’m fresh, there are no worries about that. It’s just about getting more cricket under my belt.
"It can be hard in a tournament like this though, where it goes pretty quickly and you have to be pretty switched on straight away."
The Kings XI recorded their first win from three outings in the 2016 IPL on Sunday and will meet Kolkata Knight Riders on Tuesday in Mohali.
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After disappointing losses to Delhi Daredevils and Gujarat Lions, Punjab left Johnson out of their XI in favour of Kyle Abbott in Sunday’s win over Pune, but his teammate Glenn Maxwell starred, smacking an unbeaten 32 off 14 balls to see his side home with eight balls to spare.
Having their first victory on the board will be a relief for Punjab, while Johnson expects his team can continue to improve.
"It (hadn’t) been the ideal start with us losing the first two games,” he added.
"We (hadn’t) scored the runs we needed, which has been an issue on good wickets where it’s not too hard to chase. We need to get better at that."