Clark honoured in Australia Day awards

Former Australia captain Belinda Clark has been honoured in the annual Australia Day list, and named an Officer of the Order of Australia for services to cricket.

As a player, Clark played 15 Tests, 118 ODIs and one Twenty20 for Australia, averaging more than 45 in the Test and one-day arena, and is Australia's leading run scorer in the 50-over game.

Her record as captain is equally impressive, having won 84 of 101 games she captained, including two World Cup titles. Clark produced what was arguably one of her finest moments on the field during a 1997 World Cup match against Denmark when she scored an unbeaten 229 runs from 155 balls to become the first cricketer to score a double century in an ODI.

In 2011, she became just the second woman to be inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame, having already been inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame, Cricket Australia Hall of Fame and New South Wales Hall of Champions.

"On behalf of Australian Cricket I'd like to congratulate Belinda on being recognised for the incredible contributions she continues to make to cricket," said Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland.

"From being a world-class player and inspirational captain during her playing days, to being a champion for the growth of cricket in our county, Belinda has been and remains one of the finest ambassadors for our sport.

"Off-field, Belinda has continued to be a key influencer in Australia Cricket, having spent time as the Chief Executive of Women's Cricket Australia and the manager of the Bupa National Cricket Centre in Brisbane, a role which saw her oversee the next generation of male and female talent.

"Her current role as Head of Junior Cricket has seen her attention redirected to overseeing a large-scale transformation project which has already successfully delivered the Australian Cricket pilots of Junior Formats.

"As a result of the successful pilots, Junior cricket in Australia is being transformed to deliver more fun, action and superior skill development."

Clark's work extends beyond Australian shores to the International Cricket Council where she has been a member of the Women's Committee for more than a decade and as a Board member of the Local Organising Committee for the World T20 tournament in two years' time to ensure the tournament leaves a significant legacy in the community.