A leader's challenge: What Michael Clarke must do now

If there is some truth to the alleged disagreement between all-rounder Shane Watson and Clarke, the captain will need to take the first step in repairing relations. Both are immensely talented and proud individuals, and it is going to be difficult for the team if they don’t get along. For the greater good, and for the short-term at least, the two icons of modern Australian cricket will have to put their “feud” aside and work together, and when that happens, opposing teams would be in for a rough time!

Its time to think!

As the mainstay of the middle and lower order, Clarke has added responsibility on his shoulders. Now that the swashbuckling David Warner is temporarily unavailable for disciplinary reasons, the batting looks decidedly shaky if the top order doesn’t fire. Watson briefly came into his own in the second innings, but impetuosity doesn’t have a place in Test cricket if one wants to play a long innings. Clarke, on the other hand, has failed to get going – 23 runs from two innings doesn’t do justice to a man who scored an unbeaten 329 against India last season.

He needs to make a few adjustments in his technique. Footwork against both pace and spin is absolutely essential at the highest level, and Clarke seems to have forgotten how to move his feet to the pitch of the ball. Secondly, his head position isn’t the greatest. It’s got to be held in such a way that the batsman plays the ball at eye level – the teenage Australian who gave Clarke that tip during the previous Ashes tourney had it spot on. He would do well to get some valuable advice from his old coach Neil D’ Costa if he wants to secure the urn this time.

Cricket is as much a mental game as it is physical. Clarke has been losing the battle in the mind even before he plays those incredulous shots that result in his downfall. He must relax and enjoy his game, because, after all, it gives him great joy. Granted that captaincy is not the easiest of jobs, but you grow into these things. For tough tours, such as the ongoing one, your mental make-up must be made of cast-iron.

The willingness to rough it out on the 22-yard strip, the tenacity to hang on till the last ball is bowled, and the intensity with which Australia is known to play cricket must be at very high levels in order to turn things around. When batting, Clarke must get out of the captaincy mode and switch into the confident, graceful batsman that he is. That’s what defines great leaders – the ability to switch between roles. It’s hard to do, but it can be done.

It is a long, hard road that Michael John Clarke must go on in order to regain Australia’s once-invincible stature in world cricket. There is no better opportunity than the present series, and the time is ripe for him to take the challenge head-on and turn it around. Batsman or captain – he will shine in both roles for as long as he plays. Till then, like all of Australia, the world will wait and watch!