Mitchell Johnson Reveals Reason Behind David Warner and George Bailey Criticism
David Warner and Mitchell Johnson during an Ashes series [X.com]
While on the field, Australia might be rejoicing in the World Cup glory, but off the field, it has been quite troublesome.
Former pacer Mitchell Johnson's outburst regarding opener David Warner and Cricket Australia (CA) chief of selector George Bailey did not go down well, inviting criticism from several quarters.
Responding to the public outrage, Johnson has revealed his reasons behind targeting both Warner and Bailey, which has a personal side to it.
In his column for The West Australian, the former speedster stated how Warner's wife Candice texted a "quite personal" response, while Bailey also texted the pacer a rather "strong" response, question Johnson's well-being.
Here's what Johnson wrote
"I tried to ring (Warner) to talk to him about it, which I've always been open about with the guys. It was never a personal thing then. Until that point. That is what prompted me to write the article, or part of it, as well. It's definitely a factor. Some of the things that he mentioned in that message, I won't say it because that's up to Dave to say if he wants to talk about it, (but) there was some stuff in there, which was extremely disappointing ... and pretty bad to be honest.
I'm fine. I'm not angry. I'm not jealous. I'm just writing a piece that I felt I needed to write. It's basically having a dig at someone's mental health and saying that I must have something going on, (that) a mental-health issue has made me say what I've said. It sort of tries to downplay the questions that I've asked in that article ... It seems very childish from George, and condescending.''
Interestingly, Warner and Johnson played for Australia together for more than five years, and also won the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 and 2013-14 Ashes.