Clarke bows out of one-day cricket with all guns blazing

By Ian Ransom MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Australia captain Michael Clarke had hoped his retirement from one-day international cricket would be a foot-note to Australia's successful bid for a fifth World Cup. But having top-scored for Australia with a 74 to push his team to victory over New Zealand, the 33-year-old bowed out with guns blazing in a fairytale farewell at a packed Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday. James Faulkner won the man-of-the-match award for his three-wicket haul that sent New Zealand crashing to 183, but the night belonged to Clarke who saved his best for last. "I said yesterday that I thought it was the right time. Now I know it's the right time," Clarke told reporters after his 245th ODI match left him with a total of 7,981 runs at an impressive average of 44.58. "There's no such things as fairytales in sport but that's as close as it gets." In front of a roaring crowd of 93,000, Clarke had the golden touch from the start, his first left-field bowling change bringing an immediate wicket. Bringing in Glenn Maxwell in the 12th over, the part-time spinner bowled New Zealand opener Martin Guptill for 15, leaving New Zealand rocking at 33-2. Clarke would later position himself at slip, and took a sharp catch to dismiss Luke Ronchi for a duck off the bowling of player-of-the-tournament Mitchell Starc. Though Australia were set a modest chase of 184 for victory, Clarke came to the crease with his team wobbling at 63-2. Watchful at first, he dominated his partnership with captain-in-waiting Steven Smith, crunching 10 fours and a six in a 72-ball knock, his most fluent of a mostly scratchy World Cup campaign. He seemed destined to push Australia to victory, so his dismissal, bowled by paceman Matt Henry, drew groans from the crowd then a standing ovation as he left the MCG for the last time in a gold outfit. At times a polarising figure in cricket-mad Australia, Clarke finishes his one-day career with a second World Cup win after the 2007 triumph, and with legacy intact after a tumultuous few months in which he struggled with the death of his "little brother" Phillip Hughes. Clarke's role in leading the mourning for his team mate, who was killed by a short ball during a domestic match in November, endeared him to the Australian public. His stirring test century against India when battling injury in the tribute match to Hughes in Adelaide will remain a part of Australian sporting folklore for decades to come. Clarke wore an armband throughout the tournament for his team mate who died at the age of 25, and said Hughes was the 16th member of Australia's World Cup squad. "It makes it more special, there's no doubt about it," Clarke said. "We are still thinking about him. We are still talking about him, and we always will. "I won't play another game, I certainly won't play a test match without his test number on my hat, and I'll wear this black armband for the rest of my career." (Editing by Amlan Chakraborty)