Former Australia captain Belinda Clark has been elevated to Legend status in the Sport Australia Hall of Fame (SAHOF), a step that places her alongside Donald Bradman, Keith Miller, Richie Benaud, Dennis Lillee and Shane Warne. The honour, reserved for those showing “excellence, longevity, resilience and lifelong contribution”, acknowledges a career that stretched from 1991 to 2005 and has continued well past retirement.
Clark’s numbers remain startlingly good. In 118 one-day internationals she averaged 47.49; in 15 Tests, 45.95. Appointed national captain at 23, she led Australia in 101 ODIs, winning 83 of them and collecting World Cups in 1997 and 2005. Eleven of her 15 Tests were also under her charge. During the 1997 World Cup she produced 229 not out against Denmark, the first double-hundred in ODI cricket—men’s or women’s.
Reflecting on the award, Clark said, “It’s an unbelievable honour to be elevated to Legend status in the Sport Australia Hall of Fame. I am experiencing a combination of surprise, gratitude and pride. I played a team sport, and the reality is none of us achieve anything without the support and commitment of the whole team. I hope my team-mates along with the coaches, support staff and administration feel like they are a part of this recognition. Professionally, I am proud of where the sport is going. It is setting the pace in the ambition to be equitable and whilst there is still a way to go, I am bullish about the future.”
Selection-panel chair Bruce McAvaney underlined Clark’s influence: “She’s a trailblazer, an extraordinary batter, who changed the mode of play by attacking the bowling. Player, captain and ultimately the top-level administrator, her leadership and influence are unrivalled.”
Since quitting the middle order, Clark has worked inside Cricket Australia and on the ICC Women’s Committee, pushing commercial growth and participation pathways at grassroots level. Her bronze likeness, unveiled at the SCG in 2023, is the first statue of a female cricketer anywhere in the world—symbolic of how far the women’s game has travelled, and of her part in that journey.
Analysis remains straightforward. Clark’s elevation caps a 30-year shift during which Australia’s women have moved from semi-professional status to packed-house World Cup finals and fully fledged professional contracts. Her run-scoring set benchmarks; her administration has helped create the conditions allowing current stars to chase them. In that sense, the newly minted Legend keeps batting for the team, just from a different end.
