“My goal is to continue to play for Australia for a lot longer”

Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo

Australia captain Michael Clarke has announced that he has no intentions of retiring from Tests or ODIs.

Clarke’s comments come after he re-injured his hamstring during the first ODI against South Africa in Perth.

When asked if he would consider retiring within the next 12 months, Clarke told Australia TV station Nine Network: “No I don’t. My goal is to continue to play for Australia for a lot longer; I love both forms of the game. I want to continue to play both forms of the game.

“Once you get past the age of 30, I think naturally there’s always talk about who’s going to be next, how long you play for. I probably experienced the other side of that as vice-captain.

“People should be looking and thinking about who is going to take that role once I’m either dropped or not selected, or I retire.”

Clarke also noted that he is eager to play in the upcoming Test series against India, which gets underway on December 4 in Brisbane.

However, if he does not sufficiently recover from his hamstring injury, Clarke stated that vice-captain Brad Haddin should be given the reins.

“I really hope I’m fit and I’m there to captain Australia,” he said. “If I’m not, then I think Brad Haddin the vice-captain should definitely takeover the captaincy.”