Mitchell Johnson, born November 2, 1981 in Townsville, Queensland, Australia, is an Australian cricketer.
When attending a fast-bowling clinic in Brisbane at age 17, former Test fast-bowler Dennis Lillee spotted and identified Johnson as a "once-in-a-lifetime prospect" and quickly arranged for the young athlete to join the Australian Cricket Academy in Adelaide.
An athlete who started out preferring tennis, Johnson was late to focus on cricket and suffered early in his career with four back stress fractures that almost floored him for good. He persevered, driving a plumbing van when he lost his Queensland contract, and became only the fourth Australian left-arm paceman to pass 100 Test wickets.
With a strong, flowing run to the crease, Johnson can become mechanical in delivery, especially if his wrist, a long-term concern, is in the wrong position. When it's bad, he sprays the ball on both sides of the wicket like an old-fashioned firebrand. When it's perfect, there is probably no better bowler in the game.
Johnson achieved great success in 2008 when he was named Player of the Series vs. South Africa 2008-09. He followed that up a year later with another great feat -- he was awarded the International Cricket Council's 2009 "Cricketer of the Year" award, the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy on 2 October 2009.