Michael Clarke's 'jealousy' over money ended our friendship, says Andrew Symonds
- Joe Hewlett
- 26 April 2022
The former Australian all-rounder spoke about the breakdown of his relationship with ex-batter and national captain Michael Clarke.
Andrew Symonds believes money could have been a factor in his fallout with Michael Clarke.
The two former Australian cricketers were close friends when both started playing for their country but as Symonds' career came to an end, Clarke's profile exploded and he was eventually named captain.
Replacing Ricky Ponting, Clarke won the 2015 World Cup although his leadership style was questioned by several key players including Mitchell Johnson who labelled his time as 'toxic'.
Symonds agreed with Johnson's claims and believes Clarke got jealous of him following a huge auction at the lucrative Indian Premier League.
Speaking on
The Brett Lee Podcast
, Symonds - who was picked up by Deccan Chargers for $1.8 million in the inaugural tournament said: "We became close. When he (Clarke) came into the side I used to bat with him a lot.
This week on the Pod we discuss the newly appointed head coach Andrew McDonald and chat with former Australian cricket all-rounder @FoxCricket commentator Andrew “Roy” Symonds. Talking Warnie, Michael Clarke and that famous shoulder charge ! @CricketAus https://t.co/Ektwhlup1p pic.twitter.com/NIoLlXIcJm
— Brett Lee (@BrettLee_58) April 23, 2022
"So when he came into the side I really looked after him. That built a bond.
"Matthew Hayden said to me - when the IPL started, I got a pretty penny to go and play in the IPL - he identified it as there was a bit of jealousy that potentially came into the relationship (with Clarke) there.
"Money does funny things. It's a good thing but it can be a poison and I reckon it may have poisoned our relationship.
"I've got enough respect for him to probably not go into detail about what was said.
"My friendship with him is no longer and I'm comfortable with that, but I'm not gonna sit here and start slinging mud."
