5 women cricketers who play like their male counterparts

#2 Meg Lanning and Michael Clarke

At an aesthetic level, Lanning's closest parallel is probably Michael Clarke

"Ricky Ponting was my hero growing up. I love the way he batted and took the game on a lot. I'd mimic him in the backyard," Meg Lanning had once said. She may try to mimic Ponting in the middle but at an aesthetic level, the closest parallel to her is probably Michael Clarke.

Over the years, Lanning has morphed herself from a promising youngster to a world-class cricketer. There is an unnerving serenity to her when she is batting. All her strokes are carefully measured, and yet, intensely powerful. In addition, Lanning is a brilliant fielder and a well-respected captain.

Essentially, she has Clarke’s unflappable temperament, his watchful cover drives, his tactical nous and his natural gravitas. At their best, both Lanning and Clarke are a one-woman/man force-field – impenetrable, inscrutable, unknowable.