After another year of mammoth scores, Michael Clarke’s hot streak has shown few signs of subsiding as he was awarded his second consecutive Allan Border medal. It’s the forth time that Pup has been voted Australia’s most outstanding cricketer of the year, joining Ricky Ponting as the nations most celebrated player since the award was introduced in 2000.
Already the linchpin of the batting lineup, the retirement of Ponting and AB medal runner-up Mike Hussey means Pup is our only bankable defence against an embarrassment of convict era proportions. Next, Australia head to India, traditionally a tour that has rattled even the most resilient of Test teams, before taking his inexperienced and injury plagued squad to England for the first leg of back-to-back Ashes campaigns. In Pup we trust.
Predictably, Clarke also bagged the Test player of the year, while the imperceptible (probably a complement for ODI bowlers these days) Clint McKay was the night’s bolter winning the One-day player of the year. Shane Watson closed out a frustrating year being named our best player in our worst form of cricket with the T20 international player of the year.
Allan Border Medal: Michael Clarke
Test player of the year: Michael Clarke
One-day international player of the year: Clint McKay
T20 international player of the year: Shane Watson
Belinda Clark Medal : Jess Cameron
Domestic player of the year: Phil Hughes
Bradman young cricketer of the year: Joe Burns
Yeah Pup!
Pictures by Scott Barbour/Getty images
