Cricket: Indians toy with pace assault from Johnson

Australia's Mitchell Johnson, without cap, looks back at India's Virat Kohli, right, after he bowled Kohli out on day four of the second cricket test against India. Photo / AP

Mitchell Johnson took on supernatural-like powers of intimidation in Australia's routing of England last summer.

But yesterday at the MCG he was treated like a park-cricket trundler by Indian batsmen Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane, who both scored centuries in their 462-8 at stumps.

Johnson went for 133 runs before finally snagging a wicket, dismissing Kohli caught behind in the final over of day three.

Johnson had his moments on day three of the Boxing Day test, especially with the second new ball when he created two chances with Kohli on 88.

The left-armer also struck the helmet of Murali Vijay in a fiery morning spell full of short-pitched bowling.

But he couldn't engineer the much-needed breakthrough for Australia as Kohli and Rahane put on a batting clinic in their 262-run stand.

Having seen off Johnson's second-new-ball spell in the second session, the pair went about crushing his confidence after tea.

Kohli lashed three consecutive boundaries off bouncers in Johnson's 23rd over, while Rahane hammered three fours off Johnson's 24th over.

At the end of his post-tea spell, Johnson had figures of 0-116 from 25 overs.

He finished the day with 1-133 from 29.2 overs, copping further treatment from Kohli before finally finding his edge.

Johnson arguably hasn't had such a long day in the field since 2010, when he leaked 0-104 from 27 overs in the second dig against England in Brisbane.

The express paceman was dropped for the following test at Adelaide Oval, but bounced back with nine scalps in Perth.

Johnson claimed 37 wickets at 13.97 in the 2013-14 Ashes, with Kevin Pietersen suggesting there was a feeling of fear in England's dressing room.

"You very seldom hear people in your own team saying that they are physically scared," he wrote in his autobiography, "but our tail-end batsmen were scared."

- AAP