As much as England supporters like myself must be celebrating Sunday's incredible comeback, I can only imagine that our Aussie cousins are feeling decidedly gloomy. Indeed, when the 3rd Test in Leeds had finished, the cameras panned over the crowd to show an Australian fan, hands on head and looking like he'd just dropped his sandwich in a puddle.

To cheer up our antipodean friends, here is another of the Ashes greatest personal comebacks in the form of Mitchell Johnson's destructive 2013/14 series.

It's great to see that Mitch is over in the UK doing some commentary work during the current series and alongside Glen McGrath and Shane Warne if they ever play a broadcasters Ashes this summer then the Aussies are gonna have some bowling attack! In fact, I think it speaks a lot about cricket in general that the viewing/listening public takes to these old adversaries so warmly. Warne and McGrath tormented England for years but I can now sit for hours at a time listening to their expert analysis and funny anecdotes. As for Mitch, well I'd imagine that a few of his TV colleagues who played against him still get a shiver running down their spines when he walks in the com box but it wasn't always that way .......

Johnson's Redemption Song

There was never any doubting the immense talent that Mitchell Johnson possessed. A left armer of genuine, some would say frightening pace, it only seemed a matter of time before he took the game by storm. However, his formative years as a Test match cricketer were generally disappointing with moments of brilliance hidden amongst a larger array of inconsistent and inaccurate bowling.

You only sing when you're winning. Johnson had to endure endless ridicule from England's supporters before finally getting his own back

It's worth mentioning that Johnson's early period in international cricket was not an easy one for Australia in general. England had beaten them in 2005 to end a 16 year barren spell and whilst that great Australian side of Warne, McGrath, Glichrist, Hayden and Langer returned for one last hoorah to claim back the Ashes in 2007, the next few months saw most of those legends call time on their glittering careers and lead to a rebuilding period for the team.

Johnson's first taste of defeat against England came in the 2009 Ashes where despite a reasonable haul of 20 wickets across the 5 matches at an average of 32.55, Australia lost the series 2-1.

The Barmy Army get stuck into Johnson

The Barmy Army is the name given to a group of hardcore English cricket fans who travel the world with the team lending their undying support to the players through good times and bad. One of the biggest trips or perhaps even pilgrimages that an English cricket fan can make is to fly over to Australia to watch England play 1 if not several of the 5 matches that make up an Ashes series - one of the oldest international sporting rivalries in the world.

The trips undertaken by the 1000s of fans for the 2011 series will have provided some pretty unforgettable sporting memories as England comfortably beat Australia to win away there for the first time in over 2 decades. So one-sided were the last couple of games that England's fans could afford to get a bit cocky. The Barmy Army have many chants and songs about England players as well as the opposition that are delivered on a near-continuous loop throughout the long hot days that incorporate a Test Match but the one they created to ridicule Mitchell Johnson's inaccurate bowling is perhaps the best known of recent years.

Taking the WACA pitch in Perth out of the equation where Australia and Johnson took advantage of the bouncy conditions to beat England, the left armer took just 6 wickets in 3 Tests at an average of 78.66 in 2011.

3 out of 3 defeats for Australia

Things didn't get much better for the Aussies on their next tour of England as the home team made it 3 straight victories in their own backyard and 4 out of the last 5 Ashes with a 3-0 series triumph.

England celebrate another Ashes win in 2013

For Johnson, the damage done by the English top-order and the incessant chanting of their fans cost him his place in the Test team for this tour. I can only imagine how difficult it must be to have to field on the boundary for hours and days on end listening to fans just lay into you non-stop. With the Mitchell Johnson song also being deployed by 1000s of English supporters every time he ran into bowl, it's no surprise that the man struggled with his confidence and form. In a later interview, Johnson himself admitted

Australia's poor start to 2013/14 Ashes

It felt like a case of deja vu as Australia started the 1st Test of the 2013/14 Ashes by being reduced to 132-6. Broad and Anderson were rampant and the Barmby army were already finding their voice as their favourite target Mitchell Johnson strolled to the crease with his side needing something special to keep them in the game.

Johnson and Aussie wicketkeeper Brad Haddin whose heroics for Australia in this series often get forgotten in the wake of Johnson's achievements went about adding 114 for the 7th wicket to completely change the complexion of the game.

As is so often the case with bowlers who can bat (I wouldn't call Johnson an all-rounder but he could certainly strike a good ball) success with the willow feeds their primary skill. This innings undoubtedly helped to give Johnson renewed confidence in his ability, particularly against an England side that had provided him with so many bad memories prior to this match.

You're not singing anymore!

If Johnson's performance with the bat was good then his efforts with the ball were nothing short of spectacular. In the 1st Test alone he took 9 wickets to lead Australia to a comfortable 381 run win. However, more than just the margin of victory, the significance of the performance, helped reestablish Johnson and the Australian team as an aggressive and dominant force in the game.

For an Englishman growing up in the 1990's (I actually spent 5 years living in Australia as a child), I had to witness countless England cricket teams just melt away in the face of hostility from the Australians, with matches seemingly won before a ball had even been bowled. By winning in 2005, England had very much shattered that illusion and most of their players didn't fear playing the Aussies in the way that previous sides did. This all changed again in 2013/14 as Johnson and his fellow Aussies got stuck into the English with aggressive bowling and "feral" (that is how Aussie Captain Michael Clarke described it) behaviour on the pitch.

Fire and brimstone. Johnson's fantastic performance in the 2013/14 Ashes marked an incredible turnaround on his previous series against England

Johnson would go on to take 37 wickets in the series at an average of just 13.97 and a strike rate of a wicket every 5 overs! It completed a remarkable turn around for him personally and helped Australia regain the fabled Ashes for the first time in 7 years.

2019 Equivalents?

Well, the Aussie bowlers have generally been on top throughout this series but there is of course a certain left-armer that also goes by the name of Mitch who has spent the first part of this Test series carrying drinks. With any sporting contest, I think one of the first questions a captain and his selectors should ask is "what would the opposition least like me to do?". Despite the obvious talents of Cummins, Hazlewood & Pattinson, I reckon England's batsmen are more than happy to not see Mitch Starc galloping in at them. Yes, he can be expensive and his recent record in Test cricket isn't great but he is also a pure wicket-taker. Ben Stokes has played some truly memorable innings this summer and he might have played another in the WC group game between the 2 sides but even he couldn't resist the threat of Starc. It wouldn't be a comeback on the same level as Johnson's but it could yet prove the kind of catalyst Australia need to swing this series in their favour once again.

About 5mins into the video - Starc produces a peach of a yorker to dismiss Ben Stokes as he looks to do his Superman routine