From enigma to the redoubtable

The last time English audiences viewed Michael Clarke, comparisons with Kevin Pietersen were irresistible. Fresh on the Test scene, and with hairstyles as audacious as their strokeplay, both represented brash new eras for their respective teams; a notion strengthened by their early successes on the international scene.

Save for a lower razor setting, Pietersen has largely maintained course since 2005. A svengali presence on both sides of the boundary rope, his explosive batting has enthralled spectators during an otherwise lamentable period in English cricket, and his courtship of controversy has generated countless headlines. A born entertainer.

Clarke, on the other hand, has traversed a vastly different path. After losing his Test place in the aftermath of Australia's 2005 Ashes defeat, the right-hander embarked on a transformative journey in state cricket, stowing away the flashy strokes in favour of a measured, methodical approach at the crease. The result has been a batting average that traded places with strike-rate, and a rapid elevation from the fringes of the national squad to the vice-captaincy. The enigma has become the redoubtable.

English viewers might struggle to recognise the modern-day Clarke from the batsman who bashed and dashed his way to a spirited 91 at Lord's four years ago, and struggled thereafter. In that series, blazing strokes gave way to poor footwork as local swing-merchants, Matthew Hoggard and Simon Jones, dismissed Clarke a combined six times, usually by rapping the pads or shattering the stumps. Clarke, who has spent much of the past week addressing his footwork, is determined there will not be a repeat.

"The ball swings a lot more here so I guess that is something we'll have to combat," Clarke said. "I feel I'm a little bit slow at the moment with my feet. I'm trying to quicken them up at training. It wasn't so much front foot stuff but just getting my feet a little bit sharper and getting into position a bit quicker, which would give me more time to allow my hands to hit through the line of the ball. In saying that, I got lbw a fair bit in 2005."

A quick glance at the numbers reflects Clarke's maturation as a middle-order mainstay: he has scored 2,081 runs at 57.80 in his last 25 Tests, compared to 1,123 at 36.22 in his first 22. His consistent contributions have been particularly important over the past 12 months, as Australia's batting unit contended with the retirements of Justin Langer, Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist, the unpredictability of Andrew Symonds and the concerning form trough of Michael Hussey. Not only has he scored runs, he has scored them when they've counted; a deed recognised with his naming as the Allan Border medallist in February.

That was in evidence again this week when Clarke was summoned to the crease at a time when Australia had lost 3-1 in the space of ten deliveries to a mid-strength Sussex attack. The vice-captain survived a nervous moment when dropped by Ed Joyce in the slips, but eventually ground his way to a 131-minute innings of 45 that provided Australia with the platform from which to mount a riposte. It is a theme that has resonated throughout many recent Australian innings.

"In the last four years my game has improved," Clarke said. "I've hopefully matured with age and experience. I've played a lot of international cricket over the last four years. I guess just the experience of all different conditions will hold me in good stead for the ball swinging over here.

"I've played 40-odd Tests so I've been around for a few years, but there's no doubt I'm still learning, still finding things about my game that I want to improve and need to improve. I'm not 20 anymore, but I've still got youth on my side, and I'm probably enjoying my cricket probably more than when I was 15."

While Pietersen sparkled and faded as England captain, Clarke is charting a steady path to the top-job in Australian cricket. The road has not always been smooth - he has twice been part of leadership groups that sent Symonds home from tours, and was involved in a highly-publicised dressing room stoush with Simon Katich after the most recent Sydney Test - but Australia's selectors have not wavered in their commitment to grooming him for an eventual succession of Ricky Ponting.

"When I walked into the international scene we had so many senior players who weren't necessarily the captain or the vice-captains," Clarke said of his leadership mentors. "They still had responsibility, guys who had played 70 to 100 Tests, but didn't have that VC or C beside their names. They didn't see it like that - they were still responsible as a senior player to help the young guys come in and learn what needed to be done to represent Australia. That's all I've tried to do"

Pietersen will enter the 2009 Ashes series largely as he did in 2005; looking to impose his will on opposing bowling line-ups from the middle-order. Not so Clarke. A more conspicuous leadership role and a less conspicuous demeanour at the crease reflect a near complete transformation over the past four years ago. Comparisons between the pair are anything but irresistable these days.