Clarke - My Story

HE WAS THE GREATEST BATSMAN of his generation and, as captain, possessed the sharpest tactical mind in the game.

Bursting onto the scene in 2004 with a Test century on debut, Michael Clarke was Australian crickets golden boy. And the batting prodigy they nicknamed Pup certainly fulfilled his destiny in a stellar 11-year international career of 115 Tests, 8643 runs and 28 centuries.

Clarkes rollercoaster four-year reign as Test captain was marked as much by bravery as brilliance a 50 whitewash of England in 201314, the 2015 World Cup triumph, and a ten-hour unbeaten 161, batting with a broken shoulder to lead Australia back to the #1 world ranking in 2014.

Yet Michael Clarke also sparked fiercer debate than any other Australian sports star.

For a decade his personal life, career fortunes and controversies real or imagined were splashed across front pages and scrutinised. Was he simply a hard-working, western suburbs kid living every Aussie boys dream? Or a 21st century cricketer mired in all the trappings of celebrity?

In the echo chamber of social media, the truth about Michael Clarke was warped, then lost. Clarkes enigma deepened but he kept his mouth shut and his dignity intact, knowing the chance to tell his extraordinary story would finally come. And now it has.

My Story is the real Michael Clarke, standing up and speaking out for the first time.

Bucking the conventions of traditional biography to go hard at the big issues, Clarke speaks fearlessly and poignantly about the scandals, rumours and explosive moments of his life; revealing the amazing truths, private pain and personal triumphs that no one realised.

Its the incredible story of a remarkable Australian you never really knew. Until now.

I wrote this book thinking, if I was to die today, what would my daughter know about me and what I stood for?

Many people have helped me answer that question in my 35 years, and to them I give sincere thanks.

To the game of cricket you changed my life. Id hate to think where Id be in this world without you. To all the boys and men who have played this great game alongside me and against me. To the coaches, umpires, scorers and helpers. And to everyone out there who threw a ball to me over the years.

To my family Mum and Dad, you gave me everything I ever needed and were always my greatest inspiration. I only hope I can be as good a parent to my children as you were to me. To my sister, Lea blood is thicker than water. Im here 24/7 for you, as you have always been for me.

To Kyly talk about a life changer! Thank you for putting up with me, for helping me chase my dream and for standing beside me day in, day out through the highest of highs and lowest of lows. You taught me to stop and smell the roses. What a journey its been so far and what a journey we still have ahead of us.

To Kelsey Lee, my angel, you melt my heart. Chase your dreams. Dont fear failing you learn so much by being knocked down. Get back up and take the world on. And be nice to your mother. Thank you for coming into my life at the perfect time. You have changed me for the better. I love you with all of my heart.

To my friends you know who you are. Thanks for having my back through the tough times and for having the balls to look me in the eye and set me straight when I needed it most.

To Pan Macmillan Ive always loved working with you and Im so proud of what weve achieved with this book. To Angus Fontaine and his team, and to Malcolm Knox, who told my story like no one else could.

And to all the people who told me You cant, You wont, and Youre not good enough you got me out of bed every day and drove me to accomplish things in life I didnt think I could do.

Thank you.

Michael Clarke

Also by Michael Clarke

The Ashes Diary
Captains Diary
Ashes Diary 2015

Michael Clarkes fascinating and insightful diary of the 2013 Ashes series in England.

Taming the might of a resurgent English cricket team was never going to be an easy task even before some of the off-field issues that hit Michael and the Australian team, such as the sacking of Mickey Arthur just days prior to the First Test at Trent Bridge.

The young team, filled with more talent than experience, came heartbreakingly closer to their goal than the final Test score of 3-0 indicates. Michaels account of what was going on behind the scenes and on the field gives us a fresh, informed and intimate view of the tour the highs, the lows and the many controversies that dogged the series.

In his role as Australian captain, Michael Clarke has introduced a very different dynamic into the traditions of captaincy. Open, inclusive and articulate, Clarke has put his own distinctive stamp on the job. Now he puts his stamp on the Captains Diary, giving us his unique perspective, delivered with trademark intelligence and honesty.

After a three year losing streak in the Ashes, complete with a painfully recent 3-0 loss in England, facing the victorious English cricket team so soon was never going to be an easy battle. The publics faith in the young Australian team was waning.

Despite their failures, captain Michael Clarke records in his diary a feeling of hunger in his team: a hunger to strike back, a hunger to prove their talent to the world. A hunger to return the urn.

Michael Clarke led his team to an Ashes victory at home in a 5-0 triumph over the 2013-14 summer. Along the way, the tide of public affection turned in his favour for the first time. Clarke had previously been respected for his deeds as a batsman, but had not truly won the hearts of sports fans.

This Ashes series changed that. Clarke showed the grit, talent, charisma and aggression Australian sports fans look for in their leaders. Revealing and insightful, Clarke once again puts his unique mark on the sport, giving us his account of how he rallied both the team and public behind him to bring the urn home.

MICHAEL CLARKES DIARY OF THE 2015 ASHES HONEST, INSIGHTFUL, EMOTIONAL, EXPLOSIVE.

After a stirring 5-0 triumph against England last summer, hopes were high that Michael Clarkes World Cup-winning Australians would seize the Ashes on English soil for the first time since 2001.

Ashes Diary 2015 tells the inside story of a remarkable series filled with dramatic twists and turns. Captain Clarke takes us behind the scenes of the Australian squad into the dressing rooms, onto the tour bus, profiling the players and getting us up close and personal for every team talk, strategy meeting and training session.

Day by day, Clarke shares with us the innermost feelings and private thoughts as the Australian captain while he negotiates form breakdowns, selection meltdowns, dizzying highs and despairing lows on the hunt for an historic victory. After 115 Tests over more than a decade, Ashes Diary 2015 is Michael Clarkes straight-shooting farewell to cricket.

MICHAEL CLARKE was born in Liverpool, in Sydneys south-west, in 1981. He made his Test debut in 2004 versus India, scoring 151, the first of his 28 Test centuries in the baggy green. He became Australias 43rd Test captain in 2011 while also leading Australias one-day side.

Clarke is a four-time winner of the Allan Border Medal and was twice named Wisden Cricketer of the Year. After 245 ODI games and almost 8000 runs, his final innings of 74 secured Australia the 2015 World Cup.