Australia’s top pacer Josh Hazlewood has reacted to the criticism made by former teammate Mitchell Johnson, who expressed doubts regarding Hazlewood’s priorities after Australia’s convincing defeat in the World Test Championship (WTC) final against South Africa.

Johnson had targeted Hazlewood for taking part in the 2025 Indian Premier League with Royal Challengers Bengaluru, a tournament which ended on June 3, only days before the WTC Final. In that game, Hazlewood was able to pick up only two wickets, for which he was accused by Johnson of giving franchise cricket priority over national obligations.

What Did Mitchell Johnson Say?

“We’ve seen concerns about Hazlewood’s fitness in recent years, and his decision to prioritise returning to the delayed Indian Premier League over his national team preparations raised eyebrows,” Johnson had written in The West Australian.

Josh Hazlewood Responds

In turn, Hazlewood stood by his decision to play in the IPL, claiming that it provided useful match practice before the big-money WTC showdown. Speaking on the eve of Australia’s upcoming Test series against the West Indies, Hazlewood claimed that the IPL kept him in touch and on his toes.

“I haven’t seen any of that, to be honest,” Josh Hazlewood on Mitchell Johnson’s comment

“We know what’s going on inside our rooms. It seemed far and away the best place to get ready for any type of cricket that was coming up. The weather was definitely a factor as well. Just getting over there and playing intense competition like that, it’s hard to replicate in training,” he added.

“Sydney, it was raining and I had literally nowhere to bowl. I got to Brisbane for three or four days and it was very wet. We were lucky to get on. I just thought the best place to bowl was India. We were still in the competition, we were going to play semis, and I was going to be there for 10 days. I think it was comfortably the best option,” Hazlewood concluded