Michael Clarke - Career Records, Runs and Stats

Two pillars of Australian cricket team in the early 2000s were Ricky Ponting and Michael Clark. Their mindset and fierce mentality changed the dynamics of cricket in the island nation. These two legends were basically what Virat and Rohit are to this generation of the Indian Cricket Team. Just like the duo of Virat and Rohit, Ponting and Clark’s too took the responsibility of their nation’s pride on their shoulders. Of these two, Ricky Ponting has always gotten the praise and admiration all al cricket fans throughout the world, but Clarke, to a certain extent remained underrated.

So, in this article by ZAP, let us know more about the life, career, records and stats of the World Cup Winning Captain - Michael Clarke. 

Michael Clarke - Birthday, Age and Domestic Cricket Career

Michael Clark was born on 2 April, 1981(Present age 43). He was a right hand batter and a left arm orthodox bowler. Michael attended Marsden Road Public School. He played junior cricket for Western Suburbs District Cricket Club, the same place where he started his practice from. In 1999, he made his first class debut for New South Wales. He was only 17 then. 

His constant performance at junior and in first class cricket was appreciated by the national selectors and he was finally called up for the Australian side in 2004.

Michael Clarke - International Cricket Career, Stats and Records

Clark made his ODI debut on 19 January, 2003 V England, his Test debut on 6 October, 2004 V India and his T20I debut on 17 February, 2005 V New Zealand. 

He played cricket for Australia for nearly 12 years, although he was dropped from the national team for a brief period for one year in 2005. He made a comeback in 2006 but due to his poor performance again got dropped. He was also in the squad that lifted the 2007 ICC World Cup and 2006 ICC Champions Trophy. 

He had a successful career, both as a player as a player and a captain. He led Australia in all the three formats of the game, and with his tactful thinking, he often found his own methods to tackle the oppositions. In test cricket, Clark had a win percentage of 51.06 as captain. In ODI and T20I his winning percentage was even more impressive, it was 70.42 and 66.67 respectively. During his tenure as ODI captain, he led Australia to the ICC World Cup title in 2015.

Also Read: Cricket World Cup Winning Captains | Cricket World Cup Winner's List

In 2015, after the end of the Ashes series, he retired from all formats of the game. He played his last T20I on 31 October, 2010 V Sri Lanka, last ODI on 29 March, 2015 V New Zealand and last test on 20 August, 2015 V England. 

In 2016 he published his autobiography - My Story. The book highlighted key events in his life and also the process that he followed to become a legend. 

Michael Clarke - International Stats, Runs, Centuries

In the Test cricket format, Michael Clarke has scored 8,643 runs in 115 matches, with an impressive batting average of 49.10 and a highest score of 329*. His One Day International (ODI) format career includes 7,981 runs in 245 matches, with a solid average of 44.58 with 58 half-centuries and 8 centuries. His performances in T20 Internationals (T20Is) includes 488 runs in 34 matches, with a strike rate of 103.17, showcasing his adaptability to the shortest format. Overall, across all formats, Michael Clarke has cored 17,112 runs in 394 matches, with a cumulative average of 38.25 and a strike rate of 59.22. He has scored a total of 86 half-centuries and 36 centuries in his career throughout all formats of the game.

Michael Clarke - Awards and achievements 

• Clarke won the Allan Border Medal four times, which is  the most prestigious individual prize in Australian cricket. 
• He was also awarded men’s player of the year at Allan Border Medal ceremony in 2009,2012,2013 and 2014. 
• Named Wisden cricketer of the year in 2010 named Wisden Leading Cricketer in the world in 2013
• In 2012, he was included in World Test XI and World ODI XI by ICC
• In June 2020, he was made an Officer of the Order of Australia in the Queen’s Birthday Honors for his services in the field of cricket 

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