Clarke wants Oz players to stay focused on impending matches

Australia captain Michael Clarke has urged his players to solely focus on the upcoming matches rather than Ashes.

Sydney: Australia captain Michael Clarke has urged his players to solely focus on the upcoming one-day series against England and Pakistan, and then on the Twenty20 World Cup in Sri Lanka, rather than keeping next year’s Ashes series in mind.

Australia will play back-to-back Ashes series in England and Australia next year, but Clarke wants his players squarely to take every series one by one. “It`s important the boys aren`t looking at the Ashes right now. We need to be really focused on the one-day side of things to stay No.1 in the world. It`s crucial we beat England and Pakistan and then the boys have got the Twenty20 World Cup to keep the shorter form of the game going,” a leading daily quoted Clarke, as saying. “But when we get on that plane this is the start of building our skills so come the first Test of the Australian summer we`re 100 per cent ready to go. I certainly don`t want to prioritize Test cricket right now over one-day or Twenty20 cricket,” he added. “It`s important to focus on what`s in front of you. Our one-day form hasn`t been as consistent as we would like following a drawn series in the West Indies,” he said. ANI