Michael Clarke

Profile

“Pup” as he is fondly known, Michael Clarke started out fairly early in cricket, making his debut for his home team New South Wales against India at the age of 18. Paltry scores notwithstanding, Michael Clarke’s debut was deemed good enough to earn him a scholarship from the Australian Cricket Academy and he went on to captain Australia’s Under-19 team. In the 2001-02 season, he became his team’s highest run-getter, before moving on to England in the winter where he became the first batsman to reach a 200 in the shorter format in Lancashire history. After slamming two consecutive centuries for NSW in 2002, he was selected for an Australia ‘A’ tour to England. Claiming the second best average in the consequent Australia ‘A’ South Africa tour, he became a hot topic for discussion in cricketing circles.

Nearing the 2003 WC, Australia chose to experiment and Clarke was handed his ODI debut. He responded to the call with an unbeaten 39 helping Australia beat England by 4 wickets. He displayed exemplary technique and seemed to enjoy himself on the bigger stage, which was uncharacteristic of someone who was barely finding his feet in international cricket. With consistent performances in ODIs, he finally earned his Test call-up in an away series to India in 2004. “Clarkey” couldn’t have asked for a tougher litmus test with Australia in a spot of bother at 4-149, with a vociferous crowd egging India on to go for the kill. But he relished the opportunity, combining with Gilchrist to put on a brilliant 151. His innings gave Australia a massive 1-0 lead in the four-match series, which they went on to win ending a drought of 30 long years. His dream start continued as he slammed another hundred against New Zealand and was touted as Australia’s future batting superstar.

An excellent fielder and a useful left-arm spinner, Clarke’s meteoric rise continued as he was part of Australia’s WC 2007 winning team and also featured in the Ashes that year. Following that, he led Australia in a T20 tie against New Zealand. Unfortunately, Australia’s dream of a fourth successive WC win was shattered by India in the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup, which then resulted in Ricky Ponting’s retirement from captaincy. Just a few days after the team’s exit, Clarke was named Australia’s full-time captain in ODIs and Tests. His first outing as the skipper proved to be a successful one, as the Kangaroos beat the Bangladeshis 3-0 in a 3-match ODI series.

Clarke broke a 76-year old record for an Australian captain to score a triple century at home in Tests, which he did against India at the SCG. After staying away from it for four seasons, he was brought in by Pune Warriors India for the fifth edition of the IPL in 2012.

Fast Facts

• Michael Clarke became the first Australian batsman in history to score a century on both home and away debuts.
• He was ICC’s ‘’Test Player of the Year’’ in 2009.

 

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Career

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