It’s been some week for Spencer Johnson

At the age of 27, Johnson had by no means set foot within the UK till Monday morning, when his flight landed. He skilled as soon as with the Invincibles, a quick indoor session on Tuesday morning, earlier than taking the sector in opposition to Manchester Originals, taking the brand new ball with Phil Salt and Jos Buttler on the different finish. “It was a little bit intimidating,” Johnson stated with a smile.

Invincibles picked him as a last-minute alternative when Ihsanullah, the Pakistani tearaway, suffered an elbow damage shortly earlier than he was resulting from journey to the UK. He arrived late due to his commitments in Canada, which got here straight after a stint with the Los Angeles Knight Riders within the inaugural Major League Cricket season.

Tom Moody, Invincibles’ coach, gave Johnson some easy recommendation about bowling at The Oval earlier than he arrived. “Moods said when he rang and asked if I was keen to come over, ‘You’re going to love it here – it’s similar to the Gabba,'” Johnson recalled. That was the venue the place he turned a breakout star of final 12 months’s Big Bash, bowling with good tempo for Brisbane Heat.

His gameplan was easy sufficient: to hammer away at a tough size, utilizing the tempo and bounce that tends to be evident at The Oval. “That six-to-seven-metre length is what I bowl. That’s my natural length, so I didn’t have to think too much,” he stated. “It was cool!”

Johnson’s first 5 balls price one leg bye, and included one extended enchantment for lbw in opposition to Buttler. His second set of 5 included the solitary run he conceded off the bat – Buttler tucked him out to deep sq. leg – and included two plays-and-misses from Salt, who regarded completely out of kinds in his 11-ball 2.

By the time he returned, the sport was over as a contest: Originals have been 58 for six after 60 balls, in theoretical pursuit of 187. But his closing 10 balls, delivered in a row from the Pavilion End, have been nonetheless exceptional: Usama Mir spooned to mid-off, whereas Tom Hartley and Josh Little have been carried out for tempo and had their stumps flattened.

Johnson remains to be jet-lagged after his flight and struggled for phrases in a post-match interview with Sky Sports. “It’s an absolute blur at the minute,” he stated. “To be here in front of these awesome fans, playing at The Oval, it’s awesome. I’m pinching myself, really.”

If they do attain the knockout levels for the primary time, they should do with out Johnson, given his Australia call-up. “I didn’t officially get told until the back end of last week. It’s obviously pretty cool to, hopefully, be debuting for my country. It’s a little bit tough to take in.”

“From where I was to now, I’ve just taken everything in my stride,” Johnson stated. “I keep saying the term ‘ride the wave’, and that’s what I try to do.” It is working effectively sufficient for him thus far.