DERBY: Australia captain Michael Clarke’s run of modest scores is not being exacerbated by his longstanding physical problems, according to team batting coach Michael di Venuto.

The 34-year-old Clarke is one of the outstanding batsmen of his generation, having scored over 8,500 Test runs, including 28 hundreds, at an average of more than 50.

But he has compiled just two centuries in his last 26 Test innings and hasn’t made a fifty at that level since returning on Australia’ recent tour of the West Indies.

Clarke has had to cope with a chronic back complaint throughout his career but there are concerns that recent hamstring trouble has only made that condition worse.

He hasn’t looked his typical elegant self at the crease so far on the Ashes tour and, with the five-match series level at 1-1 following his side’s 405-run thrashing of England at Lord’s, Australia would love to see Clarke back to his best come the third Test at Edgbaston, which starts on Wednesday.

Di Venuto said that was possible given Clarke was suffering from no more than the kind of lean spell which afflicts all batsmen at some stage of their careers.

“He seems unrestricted and he hasn’t had a problem since, so I certainly don’t think that’s any reason why he hasn’t been able to get a big score of late,” di Venuto told Australian media during the drawn tour match with Derbyshire.

“I thought he looked pretty good in the World Cup final for his 70-odd. And he looked pretty good when he couldn’t move when he scored a hundred when his back was no good against India.

“As batsmen, you go through little patches where things don’t quite click,” added di Venuto.

Di Venuto, however, was confident a big score from Clarke was just around the corner.

“He’s not too far away. He knows how to go about it and how to get himself back scoring runs. You can’t do that in the nets. You’ve got to do that out in the middle,” added 41-year-old di Venuto, who played nine One-day Internationals for Australia but did not win a Test cap.

Clarke spent more than 90 minutes batting on Saturday, making 44 not out after promoting himself to open Australia’s second innings at Derby.

Having fallen for 16 in the first innings, Clarke had made 19 on Saturday when Derbyshire wicket-keeper Harvey Hosein dropped a difficult diving chance.

That reprieve apart, Clarke was rarely troubled and, if not exactly fluent, a couple of drives hinted at better days ahead.

“I’m sure a big score is not too far away,” said di Venuto. “He’s meticulous in his preparation. He’s playing well in the nets, he’s preparing well. He just needs a bit of luck.”

Clarke has been struggling for runs so far against England this tour with a top score of 38 in four Test innings.

Australia reached 95 for one in 24.1 overs when Clarke offered a draw, even though there was still roughly an hour-and-a-half left in the day’s play.

Clarke batted for 96 minutes and faced 74 balls, including eight fours.

The only wicket Derbyshire managed on Saturday came when Shaun Marsh, Mitchell’s older brother, retired at tea on 30.

Brief scores:

AUSTRALIA 413-9 declared (D.A. Warner 101 retired out, S.E. Marsh 101 retired out, S.R. Watson 61, M.R. Marsh 53, B.J. Haddin 32; W.S. Davis 3-63, H.J. White 2-85) and 95-1 (M.J. Clarke 44 not out, S.E. Marsh 30 retired out); DERBYSHIRE 259 (A.P. Palladino 82, D.J. Wainwright 38; M.R. Marsh 4-41, Fawad Ahmed 3-68).

Published in Dawn, July 27th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play