So, Michael Clarke has announced his retirement from international cricket, to take place at the end of the Ashes series. It's kind of surprising and not surprising. Surprising because he's only 34, still young for a cricketer, and because he had been so adamant that he was not retiring. Not surprising, because his degenerative back condition always meant he would retire younger than most, and because over the past few months he has looked like his heart's not in it. No-one in elite sport is universally loved even among among their team-mates, especially not while they're playing. Elite sportspeople are driven and competitive and this often makes them abrasive and inconsiderate. Still, Clarke seems to have copped more criticism than most considering his achievements. So, in the interests of fairness, here's six things to remember him by. 1. 2012 In the 2012 calendar year, the year after he took over as captain, he scored 2,400 test runs including thre
'Contemplating the teeming life of the shore, we have an uneasy sense of the communication of some universal truth that lies just beyond our grasp.' - Rachel Carson