Should Michael Clarke Be Australia's Next Test Captain?

[shravi]

Do not agree with this either.

Ponting is easily the most aggressive and sporting captain out there. Just look at his declarations in the 1st innings compared to others like Strauss or G Smith.

Who wouldn't be attacking when you've got Bollinger, Harris and Johnson. Graeme Smith has Dale Steyn but Morkel can be very hit and miss, Harris is a containment bowler and has had problems choosing that third seamer.

 

[ballers101]

What Hmarka is trying to say is that, Ponting always goes for the win. If you look at other captains they sometimes look to draw the match but Ponting most of the times always goes for the win, similar to Imran Khan.

 

[pcfan123]

Yes, i mean he declares 1st innings in the 400s! I have never seen anyone do that, Graeme Smith wont even declare his 2nd innings until his lead is over 450ish!

 

[ballers101]

Thats also because he doesn't trust his team like Ponting does.

 

[shravi]

Yes, i mean he declares 1st innings in the 400s! I have never seen anyone do that, Graeme Smith wont even declare his 2nd innings until his lead is over 450ish!

Yeah, what I'm saying is that he has good reason to be aggressive. He has a very good bowling line up that he can rely on to do their job. That said, it's still very sporting. I like a captain that wants to keep the game moving.

 

[rahuldravidfan]

I think Ponting has constantly been accused of having won most of his matches coz he had the best of the players. However, over the past year or so, he has built a good team despite the exodus of his top players.

He still has room for improvement, but his captainship form is quite commendable.

I think Clarke might be the only experienced choice to lead Australia after Ponting says buh-bye.

 

[War]

He probably will be by the time Ponting is ready to retire. But i dunno, Clarke just doesn't give off that captaincy aura to me. I remember when Ponting became ODI captain in 2002 full time, he definately showed that captaincy aura in ODIs circa 2002-2004 before took over the test captaincy full time in 2004.

I dont know if its because he still looks so young (hence the nickhame Pup). Maybe if he adds a thick beard it will help.

 

[Dare]

When Clarke takes over the captaincy he will be the most experienced test player in the team and would have had the coaching of Ponting which will make the job easier for him. He will probably have Pontings backing too.

 

[shravi]

When Clarke does get the captaincy, it will be in a very tough phase when Ponting, Katich and Hussey have retired so he certainly has got his work cut out for him. He'll need to be aggressive and command the respect of his players and let them know that he's in charge and I just don't see Clarke as a domineering figure as you need to be when you are ushering your team into a new era with all these youngsters/newbies coming in.

 

[Dare]

Aussies are one of those rare teams where respecting the captain and senior players is never a problem. Nobody on that team is questioning Ponting and nobody can. When that transition comes Clarke will have 70+/80 tests under his belt and if appointed captain by CA he will be the undisputed leader of the team. If one of the younger players has a problem with him and his captaincy CA will deal with that. When you are appointed by Cricket Australia as their captain then there is no question who is the leader unlike many other teams at this moment.

 

[shravi]

Aussies are one of those rare teams where respecting the captain and senior players is never a problem. Nobody on that team is questioning Ponting and nobody can. When that transition comes Clarke will have 70+/80 tests under his belt and if appointed captain by CA he will be the undisputed leader of the team. If one of the younger players has a problem with him and his captaincy CA will deal with that. When you are appointed by Cricket Australia as their captain then there is no question who is the leader unlike many other teams at this moment.

Yeah, that's true. It's not like Pakistan where Clarke would have ego clashes with Haddin and Watson. Tactically, I think Clarke is a great captain. I think he has a very good cricketing brain. What I'm not so sure about is his man management skills, especially off the field.

 

[Dare]

Yeah, that's true. It's not like Pakistan where Clarke would have ego clashes with Haddin and Watson. Tactically, I think Clarke is a great captain. I think he has a very good cricketing brain. What I'm not so sure about is his man management skills, especially off the field.

Thats one thing he will have to improve. He will need to keep his personal life in check and he wont be able to take time off like he did in the beginning of the NZ series just to deal with girlfriend problems.

 

[pcfan123]

Clarke just needs to drop the whole 'backstreet boy' attitude and look. He is going to have to grow up basically, which it seems he already is doing.

 

[Robelinda]

Cant believe people think Katich should be captain, he's got maybe 18 months to 2 years left in him.

 

[TumTum]

Clarke is very pro-active but still not sure how he will react when the going gets tough at Test level.