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Belinda Clark

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Belinda Clark

AO
Personal information
Full name
Belinda Jane Clark
Born (1970-09-10) 10 September 1970 (age 54)
Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm off break
RoleBatter
International information
National side
Test debut (cap 119)26 January 1991 v India
Last Test24 August 2005 v England
ODI debut (cap 66)17 January 1991 v New Zealand
Last ODI1 September 2005 v England
Only T20I (cap 3)2 September 2005 v England
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1990/91–2000/01New South Wales
2001/02–2004/05Victoria
Career statistics
Competition WTest WODI WT20I WLA
Matches 15 118 1 244
Runs scored 919 4844 4 10,340
Batting average 45.95 47.49 4.00 49.47
100s/50s 2/6 5/30 0/0 14/74
Top score 136 229* 4 229*
Balls bowled 78 90 – 648
Wickets 1 3 – 18
Bowling average 28.00 17.00 – 21.33
5 wickets in innings 0 0 – 0
10 wickets in match 0 0 – 0
Best bowling 1/10 1/7 – 2/16
Catches/stumpings 4/– 45/– 1/– 119/–
Medal record
Women's Cricket
Representing  Australia
ICC Women's Cricket World Cup
Third place 1993 England
Winner 1997 India
Runner-up 2000 New Zealand
Winner 2005 South Africa
Source: CricketArchive, 31 December 2022

Belinda Jane Clark AO (born 10 September 1970) is an Australian former cricketer and sports administrator. A right-handed batter, she served as the captain of the national women's team for eleven years and was a member of triumphant World Cup campaigns in 1997 and 2005. The first player to record a double century in the One Day International (ODI) format of the game, Clark has scored the most runs (4,844 at an average of 47.49)[1] and captained the most matches (101 at a winning rate of 83%)[2] of any Australian woman in ODIs. She has also achieved emphatic success domestically, winning five championships with New South Wales and two with Victoria while playing in the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL).

Widely considered a pioneer of the game and one of the greatest female players ever,[3][4][5] Clark was the first woman inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame and the second in the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. Her accomplishments on the field are arguably matched by her contribution to the sport off the field through efforts to grow the game while serving in various administration roles, including as an executive for Cricket Australia and a member of the International Cricket Council's Women's Committee.

Early life

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Clark was born in Newcastle, New South Wales to father Allan, a school teacher and inter-district cricketer, and mother Margaret, a state tennis champion. She grew up with three siblings—an older sister and brother, Sally and Colin, and a younger sister Helen—and started her schooling in Werris Creek where her father was then principal.[6]

Before learning women could represent their country in cricket, Clark dreamt of winning Wimbledon and honed her hand-eye coordination by frequently hitting tennis balls against her garage door and a brick wall at Hamilton South Primary School.[7] She began playing on girls' cricket teams at the age of 13 while attending Newcastle High School.[3][8] Clark's development in the sport was helped along by Australian player and fellow Newcastle product, Sally Griffiths, who would drive her to Sydney on weekends to play for Gordon District Cricket Club.[6]

International career

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Test and ODI debut

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Clark made her international cricket debut on 17 January 1991 in an ODI against New Zealand at Bellerive Oval, opening the batting and scoring 36 in Australia's eight-wicket victory.[9] Less than two weeks later, she scored a century on Test debut against India at North Sydney Oval, though her whirlwind emergence could not help her team muster more than a draw.[10]

Assumption of captaincy, first World Cup title

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Following Australia's uncharacteristically poor World Cup performance in 1993, a slew of changes were made to the team, including the axing of several senior players and the elevation of Clark to the role of captain. When exiled batter Denise Annetts publicly claimed she had been dropped from the national team on the basis of her heterosexuality and marital status,[11][12] a furious Clark responded via the media, stating she'd like to "slap her around".[13]

With the addition of coach John Harmer, several young talents, and a revitalised style of attacking play, Clark's team embarked on what would be a golden period of success, notably coming to fruition in early-1997. Having scored 131 from just 97 balls in a thumping 374-run ODI win against Pakistan on 7 February,[14] she carried on with her own impressive individual form against more formidable opposition a week later during an away Rose Bowl series. In the second ODI of the tour, Clark delivered an innings of 142 in an 89-run defeat of New Zealand at Eden Park, while the next highest score by a teammate was just 28—a performance she cites as her best.[7][15]

Clark helped kickstart Australia's 1997 World Cup campaign with an innings of 93 not out, and an unbeaten 167-run partnership with Joanne Broadbent, to defeat South Africa by ten wickets at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.[16] In her next innings, she made 229 not out against rank underdog Denmark at Middle Income Group Ground—the first time a player would record a double century in ODI cricket.[17][18] In the final at Eden Gardens against New Zealand, Clark top-scored for her team with 52 runs in a successful low-target chase to clinch the championship for Australia.[19] She compiled a total of 970 runs in 1997 which remains a Women's ODI record for the most runs in a single calendar year.[20]

Winning streaks, World Cup loss

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During the third Test of Australia's 1998 tour of England, Clark recorded her second century in international red ball cricket, scoring a career-best 136 and putting on a 174-run partnership with Karen Rolton. On the fourth day of play, she claimed her only career Test wicket, dismissing Barbara Daniels for 38. Like the two previous results in the series, the match ended in a draw.[21]

Although a then record 17-consecutive ODI victories would come to an end with two-straight losses against New Zealand in February 1999, Clark's team quickly rebounded to begin a 16-match ODI winning streak.[22][23] This new unbeaten string of games included a comprehensive 220-run defeat of England on 3 February 2000 in Newcastle, ignited by the captain's unbeaten innings of 146 in her hometown.[24]

Clark led Australia through the group stage of the 2000 Cricket World Cup and put on a 170-run partnership with Lisa Keightley in the semi-final to defeat South Africa by nine wickets at Bert Sutcliffe Oval.[25] In the final against host nation New Zealand, she earned Player of the Match honours with an innings of 91, but it was not enough to secure victory as Australia posted a total of 180 to fall five runs short of victory.[26]

Second World Cup title, retirement

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Despite her own indifferent form with the bat in mid-2001, Clark captained Australia to victory in the Women's Ashes, defeating England 2–0 in the two-Test series.[27] She displayed her typically dominant form over the last four matches of the quadrangular 2002–03 World Series of Women's Cricket, managing three half-centuries and a score of 49, culminating in an innings of 80 against New Zealand in the final which Australia comfortably won by 109 runs.[28][29] A week later, in the first Test of the 2002–03 Women's Ashes at the Gabba, Clark scored a match-high 47 in the fourth innings to steer her team to a trophy-retaining five-wicket victory, capping off a see-sawing contest wherein Australia recovered from being bowled out for 78 on the second day of play.[30]

Clark's most significant innings of the 2005 World Cup took place against England in the semi-final at Sedgars Park, top-scoring with a defiant 62 as her team went on to win by five wickets.[31] Although she would make just 19 in the final, Australia convincingly defeated India by 98 runs to win their second world championship under her tenure as captain.[32]

After making a pair in the first Test of the 2005 Women's Ashes, Clark managed scores of 18 and 2 in the second match of the series, which Australia lost 2–0.[33][34] It would be her last Test appearance, finishing her 15-match career with a total of 919 runs at an average of 45.95. She then made her 118th and last ODI appearance on 1 September, scoring 36—equalling her debut performance—in a four-run win.[35] However, her final international cricket appearance did not occur until the following day when Australia and England played in the second official Women's Twenty20 International. She scored four runs and took one catch in the seven-wicket win.[36] Clark announced her retirement from all forms of cricket on 16 September 2005.[5]

International centuries

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Test centuries

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Belinda Clark's Test centuries[37]
# Runs Match Opponents City/Country Venue Year
1 104 1  India Australia Sydney, Australia North Sydney Oval 1991[38]
2 136 9  England England Worcester, England New Road 1998[39]

One Day International centuries

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Belinda Clark's One Day International centuries[40]
# Runs Match Opponents City/Country Venue Year
1 131 27  Pakistan Australia Melbourne, Australia Wesley Cricket Ground[41] 1997[42]
2 142 29  New Zealand New Zealand Auckland, New Zealand Eden Park 1997[43]
3 229* 38  Denmark India Mumbai, India Middle Income Group Ground 1997[44]
4 146* 59  England Australia Newcastle, Australia No 1 Sports Ground[45] 2000[46]
5 120 92  New Zealand New Zealand Hamilton, New Zealand Seddon Park 2004[47]

Off the field

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In 1999, the Commonwealth Bank became a sponsor of the national women's team after the daughter of CEO David Murray participated in a school clinic run by Clark. The partnership between the Commonwealth Bank and women's cricket in Australia continues to this day.[48]

Cricket NSW and Cricket Australia have named awards in Clark's honour, both annually recognising the best performing player for each respective women's team.[49] The Bradman Foundation selected her as its honouree of 2017.[50] In October 2019 she was named winner of the Arts, Culture and Sport category in The Australian Financial Review's 100 Women of Influence awards.[51]

Clark studied at the University of Sydney and completed a degree in Applied Science (Physiotherapy). She also completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.[52] In December 2020, Clark started her own business called The Leadership Playground, aimed at helping girls between the ages of 10 and 15 develop and grow skills for leadership positions.[53]

A running enthusiast, Clark has competed in several long-distance races, including the Paris Marathon.[6] She cites various tennis players, such as John McEnroe and Martina Navratilova, as her first sporting heroes before idolising Australian cricketers from the 1970s, including Kim Hughes and Greg Chappell.[54]

In January 2023, a bronze statue of Clark was unveiled at the entrance to the Sydney Cricket Ground's Walk of Honour. Deliberately placed alongside statues of two of Australia's greatest men's captains in Richie Benaud and Steve Waugh, it is the world's first sculpture of a female cricketer.[55]

Statue of Belinda Clark at the SCG

Administrator

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While in the midst of her playing career, Clark took on the role of Chief Executive Officer for Women's Cricket Australia (WCA) in September 2000.[49] Following the merger of WCA and Cricket Australia (CA), she performed a number of managerial roles within CA for nearly 20 years. After her retirement from playing the game in September 2005, Clark took on a new position as manager of the Australian Cricket Academy in Brisbane until June 2017.[5] In 2018, she moved on to the role of Executive General Manager of Community Cricket for two-and-a-half years before stepping down in September 2020.[56]

In addition to her roles for Australian cricket, Clark sought to make worldwide contributions to the game, which included serving as a member of the International Cricket Council's Women's Committee for over a decade.[5] She was also appointed Director of the ICC T20 World Cup 2020 Local Organising Committee.[57]

Honours

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Team
Individual

In January 2023, a full size statue of Clark was unveiled at the Sydney Cricket Ground.[72]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Cricket Records | Records | Australia Women | Women's One-Day Internationals | Most runs | ESPN Cricinfo". Cricinfo. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
  2. ^ "Australia Women Cricket Team Records & Stats | ESPNcricinfo.com". Cricinfo. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  3. ^ a b c "Belinda Clark | Sport Australia Hall of Fame". Retrieved 28 July 2021.
  4. ^ "Cast in bronze: 10 legends who deserve a statue". cricket.com.au. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  5. ^ a b c d "Clark retires after 14 record-breaking years". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  6. ^ a b c d "Highest honour for country girl who paved the way in women's cricket". Namoi Valley Independent. 28 January 2014. Retrieved 28 July 2021.
  7. ^ a b "Wisden's Five Greats of the Women's Game – Belinda Clark". Wisden: The blog. 26 August 2015. Retrieved 28 July 2021.
  8. ^ Schmidt, Lucinda (27 January 2012). "Profile: Belinda Clark". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  9. ^ "Full Scorecard of NZ Women vs AUS Women 1st ODI 1990/91 - Score Report | ESPNcricinfo.com". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  10. ^ "Full Scorecard of AUS Women vs IND Women 1st Test 1990/91 - Score Report | ESPNcricinfo.com". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  11. ^ Burroughs, Angela; Ashburn, Liz; Seebohm, Leonie (1 August 1995). ""Add Sex and Stir":1 Homophobic Coverage of Women's Crichet in Australia". Journal of Sport and Social Issues. 19 (3): 266–284. doi:10.1177/019372395019003004. ISSN 0193-7235. S2CID 145321414.
  12. ^ "A Leso Story': 1 A Case Study of Australian Women s Cricket and its Media Experience 2 - PDF Free Download". docplayer.net. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  13. ^ readJune 7, Alexnolanless than 2 min; 2016 - 11:40am (7 June 2016). "LEFT OUT: Remember these selection controversies?". couriermail. Retrieved 30 July 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  14. ^ "Full Scorecard of AUS Women vs PAK Women Only ODI 1996/97 - Score Report | ESPNcricinfo.com". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
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  29. ^ "Batting records | Women's One-Day Internationals | Cricinfo Statsguru | ESPNcricinfo.com". Cricinfo. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
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  32. ^ "Sublime Rolton guides Australia to fifth World Cup". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  33. ^ "Full Scorecard of AUS Women vs ENG Women 1st Test 2005 - Score Report | ESPNcricinfo.com". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  34. ^ "Full Scorecard of AUS Women vs ENG Women 2nd Test 2005 - Score Report | ESPNcricinfo.com". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  35. ^ "Full Scorecard of AUS Women vs ENG Women 5th ODI 2005 - Score Report | ESPNcricinfo.com". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  36. ^ "Full Scorecard of ENG Women vs AUS Women Twenty20 Match 2005 - Score Report | ESPNcricinfo.com". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  37. ^ "All-round records | Women's Test matches | Cricinfo Statsguru | ESPNcricinfo.com – Belinda Clark". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  38. ^ "1st Test: Australia Women v India Women at Sydney, Jan 26-29, 1991 | Cricket Scorecard | ESPN Cricinfo". Cricinfo. Archived from the original on 18 March 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  39. ^ "3rd Test: England Women v Australia Women at Worcester, Aug 21-24, 1998 | Cricket Scorecard | ESPN Cricinfo". Cricinfo. Archived from the original on 18 March 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  40. ^ "All-round records | Women's One-Day Internationals | Cricinfo Statsguru | ESPNcricinfo.com – Belinda Clark". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  41. ^ "Wesley Cricket Ground | Australia | Cricket Grounds | ESPN Cricinfo". Cricinfo. Archived from the original on 21 May 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
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  43. ^ "2nd ODI: New Zealand Women v Australia Women at Auckland, Feb 16, 1997 | Cricket Scorecard | ESPN Cricinfo". Cricinfo. Archived from the original on 18 March 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  44. ^ "18th Match: Australia Women v Denmark Women at Mumbai, Dec 16, 1997 | Cricket Scorecard | ESPN Cricinfo". Cricinfo. Archived from the original on 18 March 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  45. ^ "No. 1 Sports Ground | Australia | Cricket Grounds | ESPN Cricinfo". Cricinfo. Archived from the original on 23 May 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  46. ^ "4th ODI: Australia Women v England Women at Newcastle, Feb 3, 2000 | Cricket Scorecard | ESPN Cricinfo". Cricinfo. Archived from the original on 21 May 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  47. ^ "3rd Match: New Zealand Women v Australia Women at Hamilton, Feb 17, 2004 | Cricket Scorecard | ESPN Cricinfo". Cricinfo. Archived from the original on 18 March 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  48. ^ "Australian Cricketers' Association". auscricket.com.au. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  49. ^ a b "Cricket NSW congratulates Belinda Clark AO". Cricket NSW. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  50. ^ "Highest honour for country girl who paved the way in women's cricket". Namoi Valley Independent. 28 January 2014. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  51. ^ "AFR's 11 most influential women revealed". Australian Financial Review. 22 October 2019. Archived from the original on 23 October 2019. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
  52. ^ "Belinda Clark". The Wheeler Centre. Retrieved 28 July 2021.
  53. ^ Barrett, Chris (29 September 2020). "'It's time to move on': Clark pulls up stumps as Cricket Australia executive". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  54. ^ "5 minutes with Belinda Clark, Australian Cricket Legend". Topics. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  55. ^ "SCG adds Belinda Clark statue to Walk of Honour". cricket.com.au. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  56. ^ "Belinda Clark to step down after 30 years of service to cricket". www.cricketaustralia.com.au. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  57. ^ "Clark to step down from Cricket Australia role". cricket.com.au. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  58. ^ "3rd Final: New South Wales Women v Victoria Women at Sydney, 5 Jan 1997". static.espncricinfo.com. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  59. ^ a b "3rd Final: New South Wales v South Australia at Melbourne (Albert), 15 Feb 1998". static.espncricinfo.com. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  60. ^ "VIC-WOMEN_NSW-WOMEN_NWCL-FINAL2_09JAN1999". static.espncricinfo.com. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
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  64. ^ "Full Scorecard of VIC Women vs NSW Women 3rd Final 2004/05 - Score Report | ESPNcricinfo.com". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  65. ^ "Australia Day Honours 2018: The full list". The Sydney Morning Herald. 26 January 2018. Archived from the original on 26 January 2018. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
  66. ^ "Belinda Jane Clark AM". honours.pmc.gov.au. Archived from the original on 23 October 2019. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
  67. ^ Davidson, Spofforth inducted into ICC Hall of Fame Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine cricinfo 12 September 2011. Retrieved 12 September 2011
  68. ^ Conn, Malcolm (19 January 2014). "Mark Waugh and Belinda Clark inducted into Australian Cricket Hall of Fame". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
  69. ^ "WNCL | Cricket Australia". www.cricketaustralia.com.au. Archived from the original on 18 October 2022. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  70. ^ "Vics ends NSW domination with women's cricket win". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  71. ^ "Women's Cricket in Australia - WNCL 2003/2004". Archived from the original on 4 February 2014. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  72. ^ "Cricket great Belinda Clark honoured with world-first statue". ABC News. 5 January 2023. Retrieved 5 January 2023.
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