MELBOURNE:What was expected to be a customary pre-match media conference featuring the Australia captain turned out to be a stage for Michael Clarke to announce retirement from ODIs. Before taking questions, the batsman who turns 34 on April 2 began with a statement. After that, match talk took a backseat amid queries like why, when and what not!
“I want everyone to know tomorrow will be my last ODI. I’ve just spoken to my teammates and other officials. Just found out it’ll be my 245th ODI and it’s been an honour and privilege to represent my country in this format for that amount of games,” said the member of the world champion side of 2007. If that was what, explaining why he was quitting, Clarke said he wanted to give his successor time to prepare for the 2019 World Cup. “I was fortunate four years ago to get the opportunity to lead the ODI team. That was good preparation for me leading up to this World Cup. The next captain deserves the same opportunity.”