Michael Clarke at the end of the first day of the the Australia vs Pakistan, third test match at Bellerive Oval, Tasmania, Jan 14th, 2010. AAP image/Richard Jupe.
It has now been confirmed that Michael Clarke left the tour of New Zealand to return home and comfort his fiancée, Lara Bingle, who is involved in the nude photo scandal engulfing the press. But the question must be asked: was this an appropriate decision from a player earmarked as the next Test captain?
Yes, Bingle has undoubtedly suffered from an unacceptable invasion of her privacy following the release of the photos – this much we cannot deny.
However, and I argue this point for the sake of the debate surrounding Clarke’s future as captain, people who chase fame so fervently, seek publicity through their personal lives and rely so heavily on the tabloid media to fuel their careers (Bingle has allegedly pocketed a whopping $200,000 for an interview and photo shoot with Woman’s Day magazine!) must expect these types of scandals and media interest when they are sullied in such a way.
Clarke, meanwhile, has been happy to ride the celebrity wave together with Bingle, appearing in saucy advertising campaigns and on red carpets. They have built an image around their relationship – the Posh and Becks of Australia (shudder).
We cannot know the state of mind Bingle is currently in (although she was well enough to flip the media the bird yesterday, the same media she is dependent upon for a career), but was it acceptable for Clarke to have gone running?
This wasn’t a family bereavement. This wasn’t a life-threatening crisis. This wasn’t a matter of huge urgency, as far as we can tell.
This was just a sorry saga involving irresponsible and immature adults, celebrity-hungry individuals with more money than tact and a media who turn such banality into stories we are meant to care about.
Yet Clarke, on the eve of a one-day international in the hotly contested Chappell-Hadlee series, left so quickly it has emerged that teammates didn’t even know he had gone.
These are the teammates who Clarke will captain in Tests – as seemed inevitable before his abandoning them – lead on the park, try to inspire and set an example for.
Captaincy is about commitment, sacrifice and example.
Clarke showed none of those qualities in leaving the team for these reasons, and we must ask if this is the type of player and if this is the type of image we really want from the next Australian Test captain?
Clarke faces a choice in the coming days: either return to New Zealand in time for the Test series, while still supporting his partner in her time of need, and reevaluating the ‘celebrity’ role he has so effortlessly assumed or stay in Australia and accept that his future as Test captain should be questioned if he continues to make such decisions.
The celebrity path inevitably involves more soap operas and trashy scandals, and such disruptions and sideshows don’t gel with the added responsibilities, expectations and pressures of Test captaincy.
Clarke’s future as a possible Test captain should be at stake in the coming weeks.
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MattyP said | March 10th 2010 @ 4:00am | Report comment
Captaincy? He should be dropped from the side and give him a chance to re-consider his priorities.
James said | March 10th 2010 @ 4:12am | Report comment
Forget the captaincy for Clarke. He’s lost the respect of the country and probably his teammates.
DERBY COUNTY FC said | March 10th 2010 @ 5:51am | Report comment
“This wasn’t a family bereavement. This wasn’t a life-threatening crisis. This wasn’t a matter of huge urgency, as far as we can tell.
This was just a sorry saga involving irresponsible and immature adults, celebrity-hungry individuals with more money than tact and a media who turn such banality into stories we are meant to care about.”
Best two paragraphs i’ve read in a very long time.
Mattay said | March 10th 2010 @ 7:38am | Report comment
“Yes, Bingle has undoubtedly suffered from an unacceptable invasion of her privacy following the release of the photos – this much we cannot deny.”
Sorry, I can deny it. Blind Freddy can see that Woman’s Day ended up with the photos via Lara and/or her new media manager. She just didn’t anticipate the negative backlash. Sucks to be her I guess.
Clarke should be dropped from the team altogether. Rumour has it the reason it took so long for Darren Lehmann to establish himself as a national player is that on one tour, he chose his missus over a baggy green. It took years for Cricket Australia to forgive him.
His captaincy has been terrible up to this point anyway. I can think of two other examples where he’s shown he isn’t captain material. 1 – the incident where he sent Andrew Symonds home. Not the way to handle the situation. and 2 – when Simon Katich had him by the throat because Clarke wanted to cut celebrations short to get back to his missus. Captain should be first man leading the celebrations, and last man standing in those circumstances.
The sooner Clarke is gone from the Australian cricket team the better. He’s not even that great a player anyway.
The Way it Is! said | March 10th 2010 @ 8:06am | Report comment
100% agree with you. I have shuddered to think about the day that they may make him captain as really who would want to follow a wimp like him into a sport/battle contest? His endorsments make me cringe as he has always been in my eyes a couple of Test from being dropped anyway. He is full of himself, which is unaustralian.
JohnB said | March 10th 2010 @ 8:41am | Report comment
Not a fan of Clarke as the annointed captain, suspect his dodgy back may have a part to play in the captaincy saga, and too old to be other than put off by the earring, tattoos and general image building, but on the field it’s only fair to say he’s been the most consistent batsman in the Test side for most of the last few years, and has generally been getting better over that time.
Justin said | March 10th 2010 @ 7:55am | Report comment
And the timing is strange is it not? This story has been about for over a week. Suddenly LB (W?) “needs” MC back quick smart.
Seems LB might be the real VC of AUS cricket
Brett McKay said | March 10th 2010 @ 7:58am | Report comment
Just to play Devil’s advocate for a minute, is Clarke going home to tend to personal matters really that different to sportsmen being at the birth of children, or as Adam Voges did last year, pulling out of a tour to stay home and keep pre-existing wedding plans?
If Clarke wasn’t attached to Lara Bingle, would this be as big a deal?
And also, if the whole situation had Clarke less than focussed on the job at hand, would it have been better or worse to deny his request for temporary personal leave?
Please don’t take these questions as any kind of defence of what’s happened, or the people involved; rather I’m just wondering if there is a level of additional scrutiny and judgement just because of the people involved, rather than the situation itself…
Justin said | March 10th 2010 @ 8:17am | Report comment
I dont think you can put a little hissy fit in the same league as the birth of your child or your wedding day though could you? After all its all this seems to be considering the story is more than a week old and Bingle went to the magazine and got paid for all the extra publicity!
And Voges is a fringe player not the VC and supposedly anointed future Captain.
Brett McKay said | March 10th 2010 @ 8:26am | Report comment
Justin, I don’t disagree with too much of what you’ve just said, but you’ve kind of proved my point: Clarke – fairly or unfairly – is being judged on this issue completely differently to if any other player was involved.
Let me put it another way. If Cameron White’s partner (and I don’t know – or care – what his marital status is) suddenly needed him home, and he was granted a couple of days off, would we view his decision the same way Clarke’s is currently??
formeropenside said | March 10th 2010 @ 8:32am | Report comment
Probably not, but then again we would not know the reason (be it good bad or indifferent) whereas with the current fiasco, we all know that Bingle is largely upset that everyone has been reminded she is a serial chaser of (older, married) sportsmen.
Chaser is the more polite term that I should use, in case there are any ladies reading.
Justin said | March 10th 2010 @ 8:35am | Report comment
Fair point Brett and I think the key word you used their is “need”. Standing from the outside looking in I doubt LB really “needs” Clarke at home considering what I have stated above.
I think we see in all walks of sports that there is different rules for different blokes. The best get away with more and expectations are greater. Thats life IMO.
I think pregnancy, wedding, serious illness or death in the family are legitimate excuses. I am not sure a “the press are taking photos and wont leave me alone with my 200k” is what I would deem legit
Brett McKay said | March 10th 2010 @ 9:08am | Report comment
and that’s fine Justin, that’s a fact of life I guess. Lemo below hits this on the head – Lara Bingle is a figure the public can take a dislike to quite easily. The tabloids never miss the chance to sink the boot, despite also being her lifeline (Woman’s Day for eg, publishing the photo one week, then paying for “her side” of the story the next).
On the other side of the coin, Michael Clarke is for cricket what Willie Mason is for the NRL, or dare I say it, Brendan Fevola is for the AFL.
Put the Bingle and Clarke together however, and the smallest skerrick of a story lead can play on for weeks…
Hammer said | March 10th 2010 @ 11:44am | Report comment
the key element in your statement is … “if Cameron White’s partner (and I don’t know – or care – what his marital status is)” … you don’t know who she is because the Whites / Pontings / Haddens etc are publicity whores … Clarke and Bingle are – they’ve craved the attention, they’ve created the bubble world they live in
sheek said | March 10th 2010 @ 8:09am | Report comment
Lara Bingle is a high-maintenance, bimbo show pony. But Gawd, she’s good-looking…..
Clarke should display some old-fashioned ‘discipline’, throw her over his knees (naked optional!), give her a decent spanking & tell her to grow up or get out…..
I can’t say I’m sorry for Bingle, or Clarke for that matter. She has most willingly chased the spotlight & enjoys the limelight. And he has been happy to be in the limelight also.
The media has simply taken advantage of their combined desire to be ‘media celebrities’.
I don’t feel sorry for either of them….. !
Richard said | March 10th 2010 @ 8:22am | Report comment
I think you’re being way too hard on Clarke. I would agree that if Clarke was the Australian captain or engaged in the Ashes then it would be another matter. But given that its the short form game, against NZ, in a series we’re on the way to winning, I think its okay to risk his departure. When someone you love is in trouble your place is by their side. Lara Bingle is clearly in some sort of emotional trouble. I admire Clarke for his courage and loyalty to his friend . As for Bingle, she should grow up. If you play with fire, you get burned. She got burned and has no one to blame but herself. Her career and that of her fiancée would benefit greatly from her staying cool, dealing with that nitwit Fevola , and moving on.
Al said | March 10th 2010 @ 8:36am | Report comment
I guess next time you have a fight with your girlfriend your work wouldn’t mind you scurrying home for a week at almost zero notice?
Time for Clarke to harden up by either leaving this train wreck for good or by quitting the Australian team and give someone who is fair dinkum about wanting to play for his country a go.
Richard said | March 10th 2010 @ 9:39am | Report comment
When someone’s life blows up in their face, there can be catastrophic consequences. I suspect Laura Bingle has had her life blow up in her face and she doesn’t seem to be handling it well at all. If I was your employer and that happened to your fiancée, I would let you have some time off to deal with it – without pay of course. Michael and Laura are entitled to their personal life and should be left to handle it. But granted, as voluntarily public figures, deal with it they must. I applaud Michael Clarke, who is showing strength of character, sound judgement, courage, commitment and maturity in supporting his friend in need. These are just the attributes needed in a Captain of Australia. I do think Laura Bingle has shown that she has a lot of growing up to do. She should start now.
Al said | March 10th 2010 @ 9:58am | Report comment
This relationship is clearly affecting his cricket, if he were captain material and gave a damn about his country he would get rid of this lead-weight nobody, concentrate on his cricket and not turn his back on his mates.
He deserves all that is happening to him, he was going out with a girl that he had known since he was a kid and all of a sudden some vacuous nobody comes along and he dumps his childhood girlfriend in an instant, that’s not a noble attribute of a captain, that is pure disloyalty, lack of commitment and selfishness.
He has never been captain material and should never be selected again for Australia in any form of the game.
Richard said | March 10th 2010 @ 11:02am | Report comment
Wow. You’re really harsh. Hope no one ever judges you so harshly.
Al said | March 10th 2010 @ 11:15am | Report comment
I’m not next in line to be captaining the Australian test team, an honour that would be severely cheapened should Clarke be given the opportunity now.
Shane Warne was denied an opportunity to captain his country for pitiful reasons in comparison to this, even though he had the best cricketing brain in the Australian team by far.
Bay35Pablo said | March 10th 2010 @ 12:33pm | Report comment
Al, “Shane Warne was denied an opportunity to captain his country for pitiful reasons in comparison to this”?!
You must be kidding! Warney had a pretty good shake at beaing a pork chop, and a media tart.
Al said | March 10th 2010 @ 12:36pm | Report comment
Did Warne ever walk out on his team mates during a tour?
Mick Gold Coast QLD said | March 10th 2010 @ 6:14pm | Report comment
Richard – It is a fair call by Al that he is not running for the job, and I haven’t read anything about Al’s self promotion in the No Idea or Wymmins Vacuous Day.
On Shane Warne, he was never not a team man and he treated the game and each match with a fiercely competitive passion.
He was an A grade dill on numerous occassions off field and, for his sins, we did not see his knowledge of the game and marvellous tactical skills, serving as an Australian Captain. His Captains made sure they were never too far away from him on the field though! There is no doubt he was a central influence on the team and a driver of excellence in their cricket.
I’ve watched him mature and contribute magnificently post retirement. Talk about a late developer!
He could rightly feel wronged if this other much less able bloke is afforded more leniency than him.
Terry Kidd said | March 10th 2010 @ 8:32am | Report comment
Lara Bingle seems to be very high maintenance. Michael Clarke needs to decide if he wants to play cricket for Australia and eventually, if chosen, take on the captaincy or whether he would prefer to stay at home and tend the garden (Bingle).
He should be dropped from this tour, one dayers and tests, and be forced to fight his way back into the team.
No one who has pretensions of leadership should ever abandon his team mates without at least an explanation, face to face. Definjitely not good enough Michael. You should have told Lara to build a bridge and get over it, to grow up and shut up. Lara, with her behaviour, is dragging you down.
drewster said | March 10th 2010 @ 8:56am | Report comment
As a Sports Lover who gives a “Toss!” about Bingle and her poor attempt at crying foul. I would love to hear Mrs Fevola’s comments on this crap, At least that would make interesting reading. Michael Clarke on the other hand seems more than confused over what he should be doing. Either make a decision on it and stand by it or put up with what comes down and get on with it. This coming home for a day or two and flying back later to rejoin the squad seem to show that he used to be undecided but now he’s not quite sure. Just what Australia needs as the future cricket captain. Grow up pup and become a “Dog” bro!