Michael Clarke comes out swinging in his return to the airwaves

Michael Clarke returned to radio on Monday morning and wasted no time as he unleashed a verbal tirade.

Michael Clarke has torn into Cricket Australia on his return to radio on Monday, his first since the beleaguered ex-cricketer was caught in a public altercation with his partner and Today Show host Karl Stefanovic in Noosa.

Despite being widely tipped to address the incident on Sky Sports’ Big Breakfast on Monday morning, the former Test captain was largely spoken for by co-hosts Gerard Middleton and Laurie Daley, declaring that the show wouldn’t be delving into the saga.

“We are just hitting this on the head straight away,” Middleton said.

“It is a private matter that Clarkey’s obviously been dealing with, a very, very private matter which unfortunately was made public.”

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Clarke however wasn’t going to just sit back and be a passenger during his return to the airwaves as he took aim at cricket’s governing body.

The two-time Ashes winner put the national selectors squarely in his sights after Steve Smith’s stunning twin tons for the Sydney Sixers in his last two innings.

In his last two innings, Smith has plundered 101 and 125 not out, striking at a faintly ridiculous 184.87.

Smith is seeing them like beach balls. (Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)

Having given the rest of the competition a 33-day head start, Smith equalled the competition’s sixes record in a matter of two innings, despite watching from the sidelines as Australia failed to reach the semifinals of last year’s T20 World Cup in home conditions.

“The Australian selectors missed a massive trick with Smithy in the T20 World Cup,” Clarke said.

“Smithy gets back in the BBL and hits two hundreds in a row.

“He could’ve batted anywhere, he didn’t have to bat at number 3.”

It wasn’t just the management of the white ball sides that Clarke took issue with.

The 41-year-old dubbed it “ridiculous” that Australia head on a four-Test tour of India and don’t play any tour games.

The former Test captain warned the Aussies about being complacent after their whitewashes of substandard South Africa and West Indies sides at home.

The Aussies will be well rested before the India series. (Photo by Don Arnold/WireImage)

Smith, speaking to News Corp at the premiere of the second season of the Amazon documentary The Test, said he actually “quite likes the no (tour) games”.

“The last couple of times we’ve been there, (the tour games) have actually been green wickets, it’s kind of irrelevant practice,” he said.

“We’ve been able to control our training the way we want to.

“Sometimes at the back end of those tours it can be quite draining, so if you’ve got the extra game on top, it can take it out of you at the back end.

“We’ve got four hard Test matches there, India are an unbelievable side at home, but it’s going to be a great series.”

Originally published as Michael Clarke comes out swinging in his return to the airwaves