Rikki's chance to show he made right choice
You can be equally certain it was one of the first fixtures he looked for when the schedule was announced in the winter and one that he has dreamed would be marked not only with a Derbyshire win but with a special personal performance too.
Clarke was a Surrey player just about from the day he was old enough to hold a bat until he left to take over as captain of Derbyshire last winter, and no-one can make that big a commitment to one club for so long without it leaving a mark on their soul.
Wanting to do well against a former county does not always mean that the relationship ended on a sour note but when anyone opts to move on, they always want to give the impression that they made the right decision – and what better way to do that than by getting one up on your former team-mates?
Clarke was, of course, prepared for the inevitable question about facing his former county and, initially, switched into England and Wales Cricket Board media training default mode.
“It's just another game,” he said. Yeah, right.
When pressed, however, Clarke did allow his true feelings to show a little more clearly.
“I had eight very happy years at Surrey,” he added. “I had the decision to stay or go and decided to leave because I wanted to play for England.
“It's going to be odd. It will be strange but I like these sorts of games and, hopefully, I can get some more runs against my old county.
“A first one-day hundred will be brilliant.”
The stuff of dreams indeed – and not such a remote possibility following his performance against Essex on Monday.
This has been a difficult month in the life of the 26-year-old.
The statistics of his first season with Derbyshire do not lie but neither do they tell the full story.
He and his young partner have taken on a move to a new city and had to adjust not only to that but to the arrival of their first child. Clarke has had the added responsibility of carrying a big reputation to a new club where he has tackled full-time captaincy for the first time and that is plenty enough for anyone to have on one plate.
It has culminated in personal loss of form with bat and ball and maybe that should not be so surprising. It does not mean Clarke is incapable of taking on as much but it is an indication that allowances should be made for a period of adjustment.
Having hit a low and been part of a bold decision to drop out of the first team, what we wanted to see was that the player would prove he can bounce back and the first signs of that came with his powerful score of 69 in Monday's Pro40 League match against Essex, even though it was in a losing cause.
“I like to think I've shown a little bit of character here,” Clarke added. “I've gone away, scored a 60-odd in the twos and it meant a lot to get runs against Essex.
“It would have been even better if I had got us over the line but it was good to get bat on ball again and, hopefully, I can build on this through the rest of the season.
“It's been tough for me in the last few weeks, not just on the field but off the field as well.
“I've got a gorgeous baby daughter and it is hard work. There have been a couple of sleepless nights and I've not been in the first team after dropping myself but you have to go back to come forward again sometimes.
“What I decided was to go back to my way of batting. I had to get everything clear in my head.
“There are lots of people giving me advice and that's brilliant but I'm at that age where I know my game and I've gone back to what brought me runs in the first place.
“That's what I'm going to continue to do – go with my technique and see where it takes me. It got me to a good stage in my career and if it ain't broke, don't fix it.”
Clarke needed only 45 balls to make his 69 on Monday and struck 11 fours. It was his first limited-overs half-century for the county.
An ankle injury picked up while he was playing for the second team kept him out of the bowling attack, which does have an impact on the balance of the team but may not necessarily be a bad thing for the player.
If Clarke the batsman can rediscover his touch and successfully unclutter his mind over the next couple of weeks, then maybe Clarke the bowler will find it easier to get back among the wickets when the time comes.
Derbyshire need their captain to start playing to his capabilities. If he can do that while giving Surrey a little reminder of what they let go, everyone will be happy.
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