Belinda Clark
Encyclopedia
Belinda Jane Clark AM
(born 10 September 1970 in Newcastle, New South Wales
) is a former female Australia
n cricket
er, who played international cricket from 1991 to 2005. She was the first person to score a double century in a women's One Day International.
In 2011, she was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame
.
Together with Karen Rolton
, she has ensured that the Australian women's cricket team
has been just as dominant as the men's
in the 1990s and 2000s. Clark was named Wisden Australia
Cricketer of the Year
in 1998, and has captained
the Australian women's Test side
since 1994. She was also chief executive of Women's Cricket Australia.
On 16 September 2005, Clark announced her retirement after playing in 118 one-day internationals and 15 Tests
. She took on a new role as manager of the Australian Cricket Academy
in Brisbane
.
She was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia
in the Australia Day
honours list in January 2000, "for service to cricket, particularly through the Australian Women's Cricket Team, and to the promotion and development of the game for women and girls."
She was given an award for her excellence in 1994, when she became captain
Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
(born 10 September 1970 in Newcastle, New South Wales
Newcastle, New South Wales
The Newcastle metropolitan area is the second most populated area in the Australian state of New South Wales and includes most of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Local Government Areas...
) is a former female Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er, who played international cricket from 1991 to 2005. She was the first person to score a double century in a women's One Day International.
In 2011, she was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame
ICC Cricket Hall of Fame
The ICC Cricket Hall of Fame "recognises the achievements of the legends of the game from cricket's long and illustrious history". A hall of fame, it was launched by the International Cricket Council on 2 January 2009, in association with the Federation of International Cricketers'...
.
Together with Karen Rolton
Karen Rolton
Karen Louise Rolton is a former Australian cricketer. A left-handed batsman and occasional left-arm medium-paced bowler, she has scored the most runs for Australia in women's Test cricket....
, she has ensured that the Australian women's cricket team
Australian women's cricket team
The Australian women's cricket team played their first Test match in 1934/5, when they lost to England two-nil in a three-Test series. Since then they have improved and are generally considered the best women's cricket team in the world...
has been just as dominant as the men's
Australian cricket team
The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877...
in the 1990s and 2000s. Clark was named Wisden Australia
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack Australia
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack Australia was a cricket annual and reference book, the Australian version of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, generally known as Wisden...
Cricketer of the Year
Wisden Australia's Cricketer of the Year
Each year since it was established in 1998, Wisden Australia has selected one Australian cricketer as Wisden Australia's Cricketer of the Year...
in 1998, and has captained
Australian national cricket captains
Australia played in the first-ever Test match in cricket in 1877, the first-ever One Day International in 1971 and the first-ever Twenty20 international in 2005...
the Australian women's Test side
Australian women's cricket team
The Australian women's cricket team played their first Test match in 1934/5, when they lost to England two-nil in a three-Test series. Since then they have improved and are generally considered the best women's cricket team in the world...
since 1994. She was also chief executive of Women's Cricket Australia.
On 16 September 2005, Clark announced her retirement after playing in 118 one-day internationals and 15 Tests
Women's Test cricket
Women's Test cricket is the longest format of women's cricket and is the gender equivalent to men's Test cricket. Matches comprise four-innings and are held over a maximum of four days between two of the leading cricketing nations...
. She took on a new role as manager of the Australian Cricket Academy
Australian Cricket Academy
The Australian Cricket Academy, originally located at Henley Beach in Adelaide, was formed in 1987 as a joint initiative of the Australian Institute of Sport and the Australian Cricket Board . It was designed to be a finishing school for leading young cricketers and is a program within the AIS...
in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
.
She was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia
Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
in the Australia Day
Australia Day
Australia Day is the official national day of Australia...
honours list in January 2000, "for service to cricket, particularly through the Australian Women's Cricket Team, and to the promotion and development of the game for women and girls."
Career highlights
- World CupWomen's Cricket World CupThe ICC Women's Cricket World Cup is a Women's one-day international cricket competition. The first tournament was held in England in 1973, two years before the first men's ICC Cricket World Cup....
wins in 1997 and 2005 in South AfricaSouth AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, and the final in 2001 - Most Test runs by an Australian (919)
- Highest individual ODI score of 229 not out against DenmarkDanish women's cricket teamThe Danish women's cricket team was a team that represented the country of Denmark in international women's cricket matches. They were more successful than the Danish men's team, playing in two world cups, with the men never qualifying for their World Cup....
in MumbaiMumbaiMumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
in 1997 Women's World Cup1997 Women's Cricket World Cup-Semi-finals:India and Australia both qualified for the semi finals, and faced each other on Christmas Eve at Delhi. The start of the match was delayed for two hours and 15 minutes for bad light, and as a result each side was given 32 overs to bat. India won the toss, and captain Pramila Bhatt... - First double centurion (of either gender) in a One Day International.
- Most runs by an Australian in the World CupWomen's Cricket World CupThe ICC Women's Cricket World Cup is a Women's one-day international cricket competition. The first tournament was held in England in 1973, two years before the first men's ICC Cricket World Cup....
(1,151). - Australian record for Test runs (919) and ODI runs (4,844)
- Australian record for most appearances as captain of Australia (101).
She was given an award for her excellence in 1994, when she became captain