Klinger’s scorching season
MICHAEL Klinger, a three-state 34-year-old journeyman, has proven he has plenty left to offer in all formats of the game.
Klinger played an integral part in helping the Perth Scorchers win its second Big Bash League (BBL) title in a row, after he amassed 326 runs at an average of 36 in his first season with the team.
“Being part of a Big Bash winning team is one of my proudest moments,” Klinger told <I>The AJN<P>.
His unbeaten 105 against Melbourne Renegades was the first of only two centuries scored in the entire series, and proved to be one of the highlights.
“It was one of those days that everything just clicked,” Klinger said.
“My celebration was a little bit carried away. I got pretty excited with the moment.”
Without the Scorchers’ two leading run-scorers from the 2013-14 BBL season — Simon Katich and Craig Simmons — Klinger was a perfect fit to fill the void as a top order batsman.
Known for his workman-like approach, the right-hander often adapted to the game situation, playing both the anchor and aggressor role throughout the Scorchers’ campaign.
“In the top three you’ve got to take risks upfront to try and get the team off to as good of a start as possible and that was my role,” Klinger said.
With the Sheffield Shield season set to resume on February 7, Klinger and his teammates crammed their Big Bash title celebrations into a couple of days.
“The night of the final we stayed together in the change-rooms and hotel, then we flew back to Perth on Thursday and caught up again on Friday for most of the day, so it was certainly a couple of really good days,” Klinger said.
Leading up to the remaining five rounds of the Shield season, Western Australia is well-placed in second spot, and if Klinger’s WA side are to win it they will become the first state since the inception of T20 cricket in 2005-06 to secure Shield, One Day and T20 honours in the one season.
Turning 35 in July, Klinger has no imminent plans of retiring, signing a two-year deal with Western Australia in September last year as well as re-committing to captain English County side Gloucestershire for a third consecutive season, which commences in June this year.
Klinger was also part of Australia’s gold medal-winning team at the Maccabiah games in 1997, and with the next opportunity in 2017, Klinger is uncertain whether or not he will be available to compete.
He said, “Obviously it’s something I’d like to do again; a lot of it will depend if I’m still playing at this level by then.”
AARON FETTER
Pictured: Michael Klinger of the Scorchers bats during the Big Bash League final match between the Sydney Sixers and the Perth Scorchers at Manuka Oval on January 28, 2015 in Canberra, Australia. (Photo by Mark Nolan – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images)
comments