On this day in 2014: Johnson 12-fer destroys South Africa at Cape Town
Mitchell Johnson was a nightmare to face, irrespective of the conditions. The left-arm seamer could make life difficult for the batsman with his pace, get the new ball to nip around, and he also had got a sharp bouncer that could unsettle the batsman.
On this day in 2014, Johnson unleashed his lethal self as the South African batsmen had no answers to his onslaught with the red cherry.
How it started
South Africa won the toss and decided to field first. The kangaroos were in trouble as their top three batsmen – David Warner, Chris Rogers and Alex Doolan were back in the dressing room with just 72 runs on the board. Skipper Michael Clarke departed soon after to leave Australia struggling at 98/4. But the duo of Shaun Marsh and Steve Smith stepped up and pounded the Proteas bowling attack. While Marsh scored a 288-ball 148, Smith scored exactly 100, helping Australia finish their first innings with a massive total of 397.
In reply, the South African batsmen lost wickets at regular intervals. And, Mitchell Johnson wreaked absolute havoc with the ball. The left-armer cleaned up the top order and picked four of the first six wickets to fall. Also, apart from Ab De Villiers, no other South African batsman looked comfortable out in the middle. De Villiers scored 91, and the next highest run-scorer was JP Duminy, who scored 25. Johnson cleaned up the lower order as well, and South Africa scored just 206 in their first innings. Johnson picked up a staggering 7 wickets in the first innings.
Australia’s response
In the second innings, David Warner pummeled the South African bowling attack to shreds. The opener scored a blistering 151-ball 115, as Australia declared their second innings with a commanding total of 290/4. South Africa needed to chase down 482 runs for victory, and in the second innings too, it was Johnson who proved to be South Africa’s Achilles heel.
The South African batting line up came a cropper, as Johnson literally proved to be unplayable. He took 5 wickets in the second innings as well and the South African side was bowled out for just 200 and was crushed by 281 runs. In fact, none of the batsmen could even cross the 50-run mark.
It was a Test match that Johnson can look back with a sense of pride. He took 12 out of the 20 South African wickets, helping his side to a famous victory on South African soil.
