‘Thank God for good people in India’: Michael Clarke recalls horrifying car crash after IPL 2026 final

Former Australian captain Michael Clarke survived a horrifying car crash hours after the IPL 2026 final in Ahmedabad. On his way to the airport following RCB’s second successive IPL win last Sunday (May 31), the car in which Clarke was travelling crashed into a semi-trailer and ended up partially wedged underneath the truck. While recalling the accident, which he calls a ‘frightening experience’, Clarke thanked the ‘good Indian people’ because of whom he survived and could reach home safely.

"Interesting trip home, to say the least," Clarke revealed on the Beyond23 Cricket Podcast. "Let me start by saying thank God for good people in India. That's why I made it home safely."

Travelling as a passenger, Clarke said he was asleep on the way to the airport and was jolted awake by the impact of the crash. Revealing more about the accident, Clarke said the car driver explained what led to the crash, and the car coming underneath the truck.

"I was asleep. I fell asleep after the game, travelling. Obviously, I wasn't driving. Then I woke up to virtually the front half of the car being under a truck," Clarke revealed. "The driver explained to me that the brake lights on the truck weren't working. So my driver had hit the truck from the backside. Again, it was a big semi-trailer, and our car had gone underneath. The car's certainly written off," he added.

Clarke raises concern for the driver

While the two-time ODI World Cup winner got away with a few bruises, he feared worse for the driver, whom he thinks suffered a fracture in his legs. Clarke also noted how deeply shaken the driver was, given that the vehicle belonged to his employer rather than being his personal car.

"I got away with some bruises, but I definitely think he had a little break in his leg," Clarke said. "I was really concerned because he was so scared. It wasn't his car; he works for the company," he said.

Clarke said he urged the driver to seek medical attention.

Clarke thanks locals and BCCI for support

Clarke was full of praise for the locals who rescued and helped him. He also thanked the BCCI members for checking on the driver and Clarke.

"Everyone at the BCCI, everybody there, they've been checking in on him, and they've been checking in on me. They've been unreal. So I'm very grateful for that," he said. "It was a complete accident. These things happen all the time, but for me it was more the shock because I was fast asleep and then woke up to see myself so close to being underneath a truck."

However, despite the accident, Clarke managed to catch his flight back home. Also thanking everyone for another fruitful IPL, Clarke said, "Not the ideal way to get home, but I made my flight. I'm back here, and I'm very fortunate to have been part of another awesome IPL campaign. I love it.”