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Chennai Super Kings (CSK) picked Australia's left-arm pacer Spencer Johnson as their replacement for an injured Nathan Ellis for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. The decision was criticised on social media as Johnson hasn't played a game since April 2025. After the signing, South Australia head coach Ryan Harris revealed that the crack in Johnson's back has healed but it will take time for him to get match-ready. Also, the five-time IPL champions have confirmed that Johnson will join the squad between April 21-23.
"He got some good news, I think four or five days ago, about his back," Harris said. "Finally, the crack in his back has healed. He's had quite a frustrating 8-10 months. So the good news is he's back bowling. He's building up again.
"IPL, I think there might be an opportunity. We're still waiting to see what happens there. He's obviously got to do a fair bit of bowling before he goes back into competitive cricket. So we're working on that as we speak.
"But it'd be good to see Spence back playing cricket. He's obviously had some bad luck over the last two years."
Johnson at 60 per cent
Harris also revealed that currently Johnson is at about 60 per cent. Also, he is trying to get his bowling back on track by making a few tweaks.
"We've been doing that ever since he's been able to roll his arm over," Harris said. "We've been just tweaking a couple of things. And he's doing really well. He had a bowl the day before yesterday. I wasn't there, but I did some video stuff. And we've been really conscious of what he's trying to achieve and straighten him up a little bit and try and take a little bit of pressure off that back.
"But he's done it really well. He feels like, although he's only going about 60%, the ball's coming out nicely. So as we speak, he's bowling more. He's trying to crank it up. And it's just now about getting bowling load into his body to be able to allow him to go and play."
Johnson's IPL numbers so far
Johnson has been roped in for Rs 1.5 crore. Earlier, he had represented Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Gujarat Titans (GT). The pacer played just four games in IPL 2025 and claimed one wicket before he was ruled out due to injury. For GT, he bagged four wickets from five games.
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