Josh Hazlewood-Nathan Lyon hit back at Mitchell Johnson's allegations after WTC Final
Australia, the defending champions of the ICC World Test Championship, had their chance to defend their title in the WTC Final 2025 as well. Still, South Africa overshadowed the Aussie dominance to win their first ICC title after 27 years.
This has drawn the attention of several world-class former cricketers, the foremost among them being former Aussie speedster Mitchell Johnson.
A weak bowling performance from the Australian bowling deck, especially in the fourth innings of the game, caused Australia to lose the match, according to Johnson.
The Former Aussie laid the blame on speedster Josh Hazlewood for prioritizing IPL over WTC Final.
Why did Mitchell Johnson criticize Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon?
Mitchell Johnson openly criticized the likes of Josh Hazlewood and suggested that Hazlewood's late return to IPL marked his lack of concentration and accuracy on return with the red ball.
Josh Hazlewood missed tests since the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, and the WTC Final was his comeback match post-injury.
As Johnson suggested, more practice sessions and time for Josh Hazlewood with the red ball would have given him a greater advantage going into the WTC Final; the latter's preference for the IPL took him by some surprise.
Some South Africa and Australia players did not return to the IPL
When the likes of Marco Jansen, Ryan Rickelton and Mitchell Starc decided to return early, it was only Josh Hazlewood who played in the IPL till its very end. Though Aussies did a fairly remarkable job in the second innings, bowling out South Africa just for a score of 138, 8 of the 10 wickets were shared between Starc and skipper Pat Cummins.
Mitchell Johnson identified that the Aussie attack now needs to look for future options, and his comments sparked much concern among recent players. His focus lay mostly on Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon, the veteran spinner, as both finished with the figures of 34-7-85-2 and 34-7-78-0, respectively and failed to have the impact desired from the two greats.
“We’ve seen concerns about Hazlewood’s fitness in recent years, and his decision to prioritise returning to the delayed Indian Premier League over his national team preparations raised eyebrows,” Johnson wrote in the West Australian. “Lyon didn’t look his best on day three either.
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Hazlewood and Lyon respond firmly to Johnson's claims
Josh Hazlewood was among the first to respond to the criticism he faced. With utter respect for the legacy of Mitchell Johnson in the game, Hazlewood asserted that the current Aussie bowling lineup comprising Cummins, Starc, himself and Nathan Lyon is always looking to evolve as per new game standards.
"I think criticism is part and parcel of playing for Australia. Everyone's entitled to their opinion, but I don't think we're done yet," said Hazlewood.
He further added, "You've seen the way we've adapted across conditions and formats. We've still got plenty to offer."
Nathan Lyon had a much more measured approach as he pointed out the importance of having a balance of youth as well as experience on the side, alongside shedding light on Australia's internal review cycles, which keeps every bowler, from seamer to spinner, on their toes, thus maintaining a spirit of competitiveness.
To quote Lyon, "People talk about change, but experience in the bowling group is one of our greatest strengths."
Clearly, from the statements of the two modern-day greats of Australian cricket, Hazlewood and Lyon, they have stated that they are not relying on past success and are always looking to evolve to their best.
Also Read: Mitchell Johnson levels shocking allegations against Josh Hazlewood after WTC Final loss
Tagged:
Mitchell Johnson Josh Hazlewood Nathan Lyon Australia National Cricket Team South Africa National Cricket Team ICC World Test Championship IPL Royal Challengers Bangalore
