Editorial: Cricketer has priorities right

OPINION: Australian cricketer Michael Clarke has struck a blow for sensitive modern men by putting his personal life first.

By abruptly quitting the New Zealand cricket tour to fly back to Australia to try and sort out his romantic life, he has proven that there is more to life than sport and business, and proved that sensitive men do exist.

Clarke was roundly condemned for putting cricket on hold and flying home to see Lara Bingle, his 22-year-old girlfriend, who was going through a distressing time. For fans and critics, the sensitive player looked "whipped" for running home to wipe away her tears. Surely, it was implied, a woman's distress could not be more important than sport? In any culture Clarke's move would be questioned, but in Australia, where sport is close to religion, his actions were tantamount to treason.

Let's be clear, Miss Bingle's distress was of an unusual nature. The high profile model was having an emotional whoopsy over the publication of nude photos of herself, taken by a former boyfriend. Critics wondered how genuine her distress was, since her job consists of posing in almost nothing. Clarke, to his credit, seems to have disregarded this, and taken her distress seriously.

When the love of your life is distressed, you have to do the right thing.

For fans this was a sign of weakness. They expect sports stars to sacrifice everything for the good of the game, and clearly believe that families should come second.

In the world of professional sport it is not uncommon for wives and girlfriends to carefully plan babies around playing schedules, and there have been a number of cases over the years of women booking in for unnecessary caesarean deliveries simply to suit a team's programme. Because players are now so well paid and there is so much riding on their performances, the pressure to put sport first is even greater.

Clarke has shown he is made of sterner stuff. He has answered the ultimate question – whether a personal life is more important than sport – with an emphatic yes. He has put his cricket career on hold for a small period to deal with a personal issue. It is a refreshing change and recognises that the secret to happiness is not money, but a happy family life.

If latest reports are to be believed it looks like the Clarke-Bingle engagement is off, and the cricketer was understood to be the instigator of the break. If this is true it makes Clarke look even better. In an age when many choose to opt out of relationships by text or by changing their status on their Facebook internet sites, rather than face-to-face meetings, Clarke has done the honourable thing.

Unfortunately for the Black Caps, Clarke's romantic upset hasn't helped much. Widespread romantic upheaval in the rest of the Australian camp may be too much to hope for.

- © Fairfax NZ News