Mitchell Johnson has opened up on what prompted a staggering column in which he took aim at Australian opener David Warner.
The West Australian did not resile from his inflammatory comments and said it was sparked by a text message from Warner in April after he responded to commentary from the opener’s wife Candice on The Back Page.
Johnson did not reveal what Warner said in the text messages, only that it was “pretty bad” and it, along with his desire to be granted a farewell Test match at the SCG, had been a factor in his decision to pen the column.
“It was never personal until then, until that point. That is what prompted me to write the article, or part of it, as well. It is definitely a factor,” he said on The Mitchell Johnson Cricket Show with co-host Bharat Sundaresan.
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The 42-year-old, who said he regretted reference fans buying sandpaper at Bunnings in his column for The West Australian, is angered by Australian selector George Bailey’s “childish” response to the column, saying it referenced the mental health problems he has endured.
Johnson suggested Bailey was too close to the players, raising his decision to step aside from a vote on Tim Paine’s future in 2021 after an off-field issue, and is not prepared to make a difficult call on Warner.
He also said Bailey had texted him at “odd hours in the morning” regarding a piece he wrote on Western Australian quick Lance Morris, who has been selected in the squad to play against Pakistan.
When announcing the Australian squad for the Pakistan series on Sunday, Bailey responded to the allegations by stating he hoped Johnson was ‘Okay’.
“To ask if I’m okay because I’ve had mental health issues is pretty much downplaying my article and putting it on mental health, which is quite disgusting, I think,” Johnson said.
“It’s basically having a dig at someone’s mental health and saying that I must have something going on, a mental health issue has made me say what I have said. That’s not the truth. That’s completely the opposite. I’m actually clear-minded.”
In the podcast, Johnson said he was assisted by a ghost writer but had written most of the column himself, that he had not heard from any current Australian players but that some past players had been in contact and that “not too many were complimentary” but that he is “doing OK”.
Johnson, who will be commentating on the Perth Test, said he would consider apologising for making the column “a bit personal”, even if it was warranted, and is unsure whether the rift between the trio will heal.
“It’s a hard question to answer at the moment because it’s so fresh,” he said.
“I sort of feel like they’ve made their bed, both those guys, and they’ve made it really clear to me where I stand with them.”
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