Clarke fractured shoulder during Cape Town ton

Scans have revealed that Michael Clarke suffered a fractured shoulder during his gutsy century in the Cape Town Test, an innings that featured a sustained bouncer barrage from Morne Morkel.

Cricket Australia's physio Alex Kountouris has said that Clarke's injury will heal "with a period of rest", although it was not confirmed how long that lay-off would be. Australia are fortunate that they have no Tests or one-day internationals coming up in the immediate future.

However, the injury means Clarke will be unavailable to play for New South Wales in the Sheffield Shield final against Western Australia, which starts at Manuka Oval in Canberra on Friday. Clarke had returned from the South Africa tour hoping that he would be able to take the field for his state in the decider but instead he will embark upon a recovery period.

"Michael Clarke was injured as a result of being struck on the left shoulder during the third Test against South Africa in Cape Town," Kountouris said. "We have since done a series of scans that have demonstrated a fracture near his shoulder joint. We expect that this will heal with a period of rest. Michael is therefore unavailable for the Sheffield Shield final to be played later this week."

Clarke scored an unbeaten 161 in the first innings at Newlands, which set up the victory that earned Australia a 2-1 series win. The innings was particularly notable for the way he survived a searching spell from Morkel, who came around the wicket and sent down plenty of bouncers and struck Clarke all over the body.