Drawing flak for his indifferent form in the World Cup so far, Australian skipper Michael Clarke on Wednesday hit back at his critics, saying that his record in limited overs cricket is as good as anybody who has played the game.
Clarke, who has 7,897 runs from 243 ODIs, has managed to score only 135 runs from four innings in the ongoing World Cup. Asked about whether his inclusion to the side disrupted the balance, Clarke wasn’t one bit amused while replying to the query.
“Everybody’s entitled to their own opinion. I’ve played over 200 one-dayers now for Australia, and I think my record stacks up against just about anyone. So, yeah, for me it’s about making sure I perform with the bat and also as captain of the team,” Clarke said on the eve of his team’s semi-final against India.
Asked how big the semi-final will be for him and his team, Clarke said, “I haven’t thought too much about it to be honest, not like that anyway. It is as big as this event is to every cricketing nation and to the people that support the game. As a player, it’s no different to any other game. I think you don’t do yourself justice if your attitude changes because of the event.”
Talking about the pitch, Clarke said it would provide an even contest between bat and ball. “I think the SCG in general is a really good wicket. I think it’s normally even for both batting and bowling. So I think the fast bowlers will hopefully get a little swing and a little bounce out of that wicket,” Clarke said.
“Then as always I think spin will play a part at the SCG, but it’s generally as good a place to bat as anywhere in the world. India have a very good bowling lineup. They have a good mixture of spin and fast bowling.”
Will the Indian fans outnumbering the Aussies in the stands worry ClarkeIJ
“I think it’s a no-brainer. I think we know they will.” Clarke was not ready to give an inch when asked as to what difference does he find in the Indian team compared to tri-series. “They look exactly the same to me. They’re just playing some really good cricket. It doesn’t necessarily matter who the person is that’s bowling the ball,” he asserted. “It’s about seeing that white ball and adapting to what comes out of that hand. Doesn’t matter if it’s Mitchell Johnson or Dale Steyn or Shane Warne.”
Clarke said that his team knows India inside out. “We do enough work to make sure we know our opposition really well. We’ve played a lot of cricket against India. We know their strengths and weaknesses, and we know they’re a very good team. We have to execute our skills, and if we do that, I have confidence that we can beat any team we play against,” he said.