Michael Clarke came of age in 2006-07, showing he could marry a mature approach with a lifetime desire to entertain, and he has continued to take on more responsibility in preparation for succeeding Ricky Ponting as the countryS-B-Cs captain.There is no doubt over his importance to the team, but the next few years will determine how high he finishes in AustraliaS-B-Cs batting hierarchy.

As the vice-captain, Clarke is being groomed to take over the leadership whenever Ricky Ponting retires and over the past year he has shouldered that responsibility.larke was one of AustraliaS-B-Cs best during the Ashes tour last year and they will be reluctant to shuffle the order during their battle to regain the runs.