As a young man Michael Clarke could do anything with the bat, but he has matured into one of the game's most professional, reliable and focussed players.

Clarke learned a year into his Test career that he had to shed the flourishes that made him a golden child in order to shine consistently at elite level.

Breathtaking centuries on debut away and at home stamped him as a shot-maker to savour, but he is now a calculated player who is his country's most effective run-maker in the five-day game.