Why do people hate michael clarke

Just before the World Cup, the Australian Daily Telegraph ran a vote asking fans who should be the captain of the national cricket team. Michael Clarke came fourth. Four years later, Clarke was grasping the trophy under a shower of golden tickertape in front of 93, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, a highlight of his career perhaps only bettered by the Ashes whitewash he led a year ago.

This is not a straightforward tale of man proving his doubters wrong, rather another chapter in the love-hate-love story of Clarke and Australia. Ups and downs, fallouts and make-ups, hero to villain and back again. To an outsider, it is hard to understand why Clarke is not universally adored or, at the very least, accepted and admired in his own country.

As well as being an Ashes and World Cup-winning captain, he is fifth on the all-time list of Australia Test run-scorers and one of the best tacticians in the game. On a human level, it was Clarke who led the country in grief after the death of his friend and team-mate Phillip Hughes, delivering a heartfelt eulogy at the funeral. But Hughes's death was a tragic interruption to another Clarke drama, the captain at odds with Cricket Australia over his fitness.

It was a soap opera that would continue to play out up to and, at times, during the World Cup, which would end with the final chapter of Clarke's one-day international career. To understand why Clarke is not a national treasure, one needs a lesson in his past and the Australian psyche.

They can handle the larrikin but they don't like people who seem to be, even if it's not true, in their own bubble. And it didn't help that his former girlfriend was Lara Bingle, a glamorous blonde and model who courted publicity relentlessly without having any discernible currency to offer in return, making it easy to suggest that Clarke was "simply up himself".

Many did suggest just that, though successive series averages of 77, , 45, 56, 35, 72, 76, 28, 64, 52, 63 and 86 between the start of the last Ashes series in Australia and the end of last summer would equally suggest that here was a batsman of rare class.

Prolific Sri Lankans Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara were the only batsmen to score more runs at a better average than Clarke's at Yet for all his class and capacity to score big runs in all conditions, there is still something about Clarke that rankles observers near and far. His teammates claim that he is a warm and engaging figure in the team - Brad Haddin and Marcus North both insisting yesterday that he was the life of the change rooms and a sharp wit who regularly boosted morale.

Yet examples emerge of a cool and calculating individual. Think of Graham Manou, who made a remarkable Test debut at Edgbaston last year when Haddin was injured only moments before the match. The media asked to speak to Manou after his first day on the job and he was happy to oblige, until Clarke urged him to stay away from the microphones and notepads because "they would make his life a misery". Manou was pretty sure he was not destined for the limelight and the attendant pressures, but bowed to the advice of a senior colleague.

Simon Katich has his own view, an opinion that was forcefully expressed when he grabbed Clarke in a throat hold in the SCG change rooms two seasons ago.

Ostensibly that argument was about Clarke wanting to get the victory celebrations out of the way so he could catch up with his family, friends and then girlfriend Bingle, a stance his management team was eager to portray as a gregarious 21st century man wanting to escape the faintly juvenile traditions of a team trapped by the past.

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It also turned out that Clarke often didn't ride to games on the team bus, instead being driven in a car and rarely attended team functions.

Players were also said to be upset with Clarke's role in the dumping of team stalwarts Brad Haddin and Shane Watson after the first Test and the offhand manner in which players were informed of selections. Adding to the mix of toxicity on the tour was a long-running feud between two of the leading WAGS, believed to be Clarke's then-wife Kyly and David Warner's wife Candice.

The other wives and girlfriends had reportedly taken sides and, by extension, so had their husbands. When I wrote all this in a newspaper article the next day Clarke was soon on radio back in Australia denying any problems within the team, but significantly not one player or official came out in his defence. Clarke right is pictured with coach Darren Lehmann left during the Ashes in In fact, a few days later I found myself in a hotel lift with Australian coach Darren 'Boof' Lehmann.

I was expecting a blast or at the very least a mention of the article, but all I received was a half-smile. Mike Colman is one of Australia's most respected sports commentators. In a career spanning more than 30 years, he has covered seven Olympics and major sporting events around the world. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. Argos AO. Privacy Policy Feedback. Michael Clarke's ex-teammates wouldn't be shocked he's having a mid-life crisis - nor would they care.

And I don't think it would worry them too much either. Share this article Share. Australian cricket official on Michael Clarke during his early years in the side.

Mike Colman on Clarke's unquestionable talent on the field. Off it, he writes, he failed to shine as a team player. Most watched News videos Kate Middleton: William has told me 'a lot about Sandhurst' Prime Minister Boris Johnson warns Covid 'sadly still remains a risk' Drug dealers face jail sentence after bragging about money on camera Boris Johnson: It's 'very difficult' to turn migrants back at sea PM: Loopholes that allow MPs to claim rent 'need to be looked at' Moment over 1, kebabs are delivered to migrant camp in Dover Hit-and-run killer caught on CCTV as he ploughs into grandfather Groom crashes Lamborghini on wedding night and ends up in hospital Moment Belarus troops shine strobes and lasers at the Polish army Prince Charles delighted by magic trick during south London visit Members of the royal family attend annual Festival of Remembrance Extinction Rebellion protesters moved by police at Lord Mayor's Show.

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