Wednesday 24 June 2015 11:26, UK
Steve Harmison does not feel Mitchell Johnson and Mitchell Starc can play in the same Australia team.
And the former England seamer believes Australia’s pace bowler selection for the Ashes will change depending on the playing conditions.
The more experienced Johnson is likely to spearhead the Aussies’ attack for the series, which begins on July 8, but will face competition from Starc, who opened the bowling on the recent victorious tour of the West Indies.
Both Johnson and Starc were in the Australia team for the two Tests in the Caribbean, taking 11 wickets between them in the first match at Roseau, but Harmison thinks the differing styles of the two players could see them rotated for the Ashes.
Johnson earned man-of-the-series honours for his part in the 5-0 series whitewash in 2013-14 and his famous short-ball firepower, combined with his greater Test experience, could give him the edge this summer.
“I don’t think he (Johnson) has proven as effective in England,” Harmison told Sky Sports News HQ. “I don’t think he’s bowled as well as he would like to in England, or should I say he hasn’t come into the series bowling as well as he would like to in England.
“He bowled very well in the Caribbean, he was right on top of his game there, but so is Mitchell Starc.
“I’m not sure they both fit into the same team. I think Mitchell Johnson is the bigger threat when it comes to England’s batting line-up.
“When it comes to the short ball and pace, I don’t think Mitchell Starc is as devastatingly hostile as Johnson.
“I don’t think Mitchell Johnson can bowl the sort of ball back into the right-hander as well as Starc can. They both have different qualities, not one is better than the other.
“It just depends you could get into a situation like Trent Bridge where you think it might swing. If there is a decision to make between the two then you would probably plump for Mitchell Starc.
“Whereas somewhere else if the wicket has got a little bit in it or if you feel as though it’s little bit flatter and you need a bit of firepower or something to hit the deck you’d plump for Mitchell Johnson.
“I think he gets a bit of ridicule from England supporters but when he is fit and firing that angle that he has got and because he is skinny and the trajectory he gets, it is very difficult to get out of the way of his short ball.”
The first Ashes Test is live from Cardiff on our dedicated Sky Sports Ashes channel from Wednesday July 8.
