Mike Hussey and James Sutherland hit out at criticism of Michael Clarke

We’re sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. We’re working to restore it. Please try again later.

Advertisement

This was published 8 years ago

Mike Hussey and James Sutherland hit out at criticism of Michael Clarke

By David Polkinghorne
Updated

Cricket Australia boss James Sutherland says criticism of retiring Australia captain Michael Clarke by former teammates and coaches has been "unfair and inappropriate", while Hussey dismissed suggestions of problems within the dressing room.

Both Sutherland and Hussey think there's plenty of depth coming through the Sheffield Shield to cover for a raft of retirements as Australia's disastrous Ashes campaign comes to an end.

Prime Minister's XI captain Mike Hussey, at Manuka Oval with Prime Minister Tony Abbott, has hit out at criticism of Michael Clarke.

Prime Minister's XI captain Mike Hussey, at Manuka Oval with Prime Minister Tony Abbott, has hit out at criticism of Michael Clarke.Credit: Jamila Toderas

The pair were in Canberra for Hussey's announcement as Prime Minister's XI captain on Thursday, before the fifth-and-final Ashes Test got underway later that night.

Sutherland took exception to the criticism aimed at Clarke from former teammates Andrew Symonds and Matthew Hayden, as well as former coach John Buchanan.

Symonds said Clarke wasn't a "natural leader", Hayden said Clarke "ruffled feathers" through his strong opinions, while Buchanan said he'd eroded the culture of the "Baggy Green".

Sutherland said Clarke shouldn't be remembered for his captaincy in this Ashes series, but for his "great contribution to Australian cricket".

"It's not necessarily a fairytale ending [of] winning an Ashes series - that's just a moment in time," Sutherland said.

"Hopefully in the fullness of time people will look back on his career and his great contribution to Australian cricket.

"I think [the criticism has] been unfair and inappropriate."

Advertisement

Hussey also wanted everyone to focus on Clarke's positives, including the "many games" he won "off his own bat".

He wanted his former teammate to enjoy his last Test match and was confident the Aussies could finish on a high.

Hussey backed Clarke's captaincy style and said part of the job was making "hard decisions".

He said outsiders looking in couldn't tell what was happening in the change room.

"I'm not sure you can look too much into that. As captain you've got an important job of leading the team and taking the team in the right direction," Hussey said.

"Michael certainly had very clear vision of where he wanted to take the team and sometimes as captain you're not going to be able to please everyone.

"You're going to have to make some hard decisions and you're going to have to be strong with players if they're not living up to expectations and standards."

Hussey said the depth of the players in the Shield was a strength of Australian cricket.

He said with a number of spots "up for grabs" with Clarke, opening batsman Chris Rogers, quick Ryan Harris and potentially wicket keeper Brad Haddin all retiring this winter.

Hussey said guys like Usman Khawaja, Joe Burns and Callum Ferguson were all class players, as was Shaun Marsh, who has been in and out of the Test side.

He said there was an opportunity to cement a Test spot through the opening games of Australia's domestic one-day competition, the Matador Cup.

"I think it will come down to who can start the season really well," Hussey said.

"The Matador Cup is going to prove to be an important competition for a lot of players.

"If you can score some big runs early, get your name talked about by the selectors, then you might the lucky one to get the first chance."

Sutherland said there was "fantastic strength" in Australia's bowling stocks and added people "underestimated" the batting talent around the country.

Most Viewed in Sport

Loading