Belinda Jane Clark (born 10 September 1970) is an Australian former cricketer and sports administrator. A right-handed batter, she served as the captain of the national women's team for eleven years and was a member of triumphant World Cup campaigns in 1997 and 2005. The first player to record a double century in the One Day International (ODI) format of the game, Clark has scored the most runs (4,844 at an average of 47.49) and captained the most matches (101 at a winning rate of 83%) of any Australian woman in ODIs. She has also achieved emphatic success domestically, winning five championships with New South Wales and two with Victoria while playing in the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL).
Widely considered a pioneer of the game and one of the greatest female players ever, Clark was the first woman inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame and the second in the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. Her accomplishments on the field are arguably matched by her contribution to the sport off the field through efforts to grow the game while serving in various administration roles, including as an executive for Cricket Australia and a member of the International Cricket Council's Women's Committee.
Early life
Clark was born in Newcastle, New South Wales to father Allan, a school teacher and inter-district cricketer, and mother Margaret, a state tennis champion. She grew up with three siblings—an older sister and brother, Sally and Colin, and a younger sister Helen—and started her schooling in Werris Creek where her father was then principal.
Before learning women could represent their country in cricket, Clark dreamt of winning Wimbledon and honed her hand-eye coordination by frequently hitting tennis balls against her garage door and a brick wall at Hamilton South Primary School. She began playing on girls' cricket teams at the age of 13 while attending Newcastle High School. Clark's development in the sport was helped along by Australian player and fellow Newcastle product, Sally Griffiths, who would drive her to Sydney on weekends to play for Gordon District Cricket Club.
International career
Test and ODI debut
Clark made her international cricket debut on 17 January 1991 in an ODI against New Zealand at Bellerive Oval, opening the batting and scoring 36 in Australia's eight-wicket victory. Less than two weeks later, she scored a century on Test debut against India at North Sydney Oval, though her whirlwind emergence could not help her team muster more than a draw.
Assumption of captaincy, first World Cup title
Following Australia's uncharacteristically poor World Cup performance in 1993, a slew of changes were made to the team, including the axing of several senior players and the elevation of Clark to the role of captain. When exiled batter Denise Annetts publicly claimed she had been dropped from the national team on the basis of her heterosexuality and marital status, a furious Clark responded via the media, stating she'd like to "slap her around".
With the addition of coach John Harmer, several young talents, and a revitalised style of attacking play, Clark's team embarked on what would be a golden period of success, notably coming to fruition in early-1997. Having scored 131 from just 97 balls in a thumping 374-run ODI win against Pakistan on 7 February, she carried on with her own impressive individual form against more formidable opposition a week later during an away Rose Bowl series. In the second ODI of the tour, Clark delivered an innings of 142 in an 89-run defeat of New Zealand at Eden Park, while the next highest score by a teammate was just 28—a performance she cites as her best.
Clark helped kickstart Australia's 1997 World Cup campaign with an innings of 93 not out, and an unbeaten 167-run partnership with Joanne Broadbent, to defeat South Africa by ten wickets at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. In her next innings, she made 229 not out against rank underdog Denmark at Middle Income Group Ground—the first time a player would record a double century in ODI cricket. In the final at Eden Gardens against New Zealand, Clark top-scored for her team with 52 runs in a successful low-target chase to clinch the championship for Australia. She compiled a total of 970 runs in 1997 which remains a Women's ODI record for the most runs in a single calendar year.