- Mitchell Johnson has never seen an episode of The Test
- The Australian great questioned the documentary series
- A new season of The Test will be released later this month
Mitchell Johnson has admitted he has never seen a single episode of The Test, as the Australian great took part in the latest series of the Amazon Prime documentary.
The third season of Prime’s blockbuster series about the Australian cricket team hits screens later this month, with cameras following Pat Cummins’ side on their tour of England last year.
It was a hostile Ashes series for the tourists, with the Jonny Bairstow saga lighting a fuse and no love lost between the teams.
Australia returned home with the Ashes drawing up the series, but Johnson, writing in his column for The West, shared his confusion at the rise of fly-on-the-wall programmes.
‘Why are people interested in behind-the-scenes documentaries like The Test?’ he asked.
Mitchell Johnson has revealed why he has never seen The Test
A new season of the documentary series will hit screens later this month
‘I understand that it gives fans insight into what is happening in the dressing room. But still: why?
‘I think as a former player, I don’t just understand not only the fans’ demand for it, but also why the current players are open to letting the cameras in.
“Athletes put everything on the line, with their highest highs and lowest lows happening on the field in front of the crowd. But the locker room was always a safe space for an athlete.
‘In other sports there are also cameras in the changing rooms during those private moments. I then saw those moments being criticized by many for various reasons.
‘A blow in the dressing room after a bad day on the field is very normal. Much like bats or gloves thrown after a sack or a few choice words.
‘Now it’s all being seen and the players are being criticized for how they should behave as professionals. Somehow at club level this is accepted as normal human behavior, but at the highest level it is seen as shameful or unprofessional.
‘Maybe I’m wrong. Perhaps most gamblers like that kind of access. Maybe it normalizes athletes and that’s a good thing.
Johnson says he doesn’t need to see it because he’s already experienced it
‘Players today have a variety of reasons for wanting to grow their profiles and are increasingly gaining bigger profiles outside the game, amid increased access like this, huge social media followings and booming contracts thanks to the explosion of Twenty20 cricket.
“To each their own, but that comes with more responsibility and the risk of backlash if things don’t go your way or if you respond in a way someone doesn’t like.”
Explaining why he has never watched The Test, Johnson said: ‘Why should I? I lived that life and experienced everything, just in a different time.’