Glenn Maxwell, an Australian all-rounder, believes that a weird leg injury he sustained two years ago still troubles him, and it might be a hindrance to his Test cricket participation. The veteran Aussie expressed a desire to travel to Sri Lanka early next year for the two-Test series while hoping that his body would hold.
In his career span so far, which has lasted for just 7 test matches including the last one of September 2017, the 35-year-old has featured only seven test matches. Maxwell has managed 339 runs in seven Tests at an average of 26.07, notably scoring one century in India alone. His last first-class match was played back in July 2023 when he was with Warwickshire.
On Thursday during a press conference, Maxwell said he had worked hard on getting his leg fit enough for playing an entire day’s cricketing session. However, as per him it is uncertain how important would be Shield Cricket to the minds of selectors while making their choice for Sri Lanka.
Maxwell said, as quoted by news.com.au: “It’s still my leg. It’s what is giving me the most grief since breaking it, so it’s still a work in progress. And It’s something I have to work hard on every day to make sure it’s in a position where I feel like I can get through a full day of cricket unscathed and hopefully pain-free.”
“It would be great if I could get my body into a position where I can play over (in Sri Lanka), but as far as Shield cricket, I’m not sure how much they’ll take that into consideration, and whether or not I need to prove I can get through four days of cricket before I play Test cricket.”
“Hopefully my body’s going really well and I can put my hand up for the Test stuff as well, but there’s still a lot of work left to do and a lot of boxes to tick before then.”
A freak accident on leg happened in November 2022 before a limited-overs series against England and he was ruled out for the long term. Also, Maxwell suffered a concussion during the World Cup 2023 after coming off the cart’s back. Furthermore, an intoxication-related incident caused him to faint earlier this year.
“You’ve got to have a really solid game plan against spin” – Glenn Maxwell’s views on playing in Sri Lanka
Maxwell suggested that selectors might choose players for the Sri Lanka tour based on their ability to handle spin rather than their performance in Shield cricket. He elaborated:
“They’ve been pretty open to selecting outside the box for players who do well in those conditions, and knowing what it’s like in Sri Lanka, I don’t think Shield form is going to be a huge factor in how someone is going to go over there.”
“It’s just completely different conditions, you’ve got to have a really solid game plan against spin and a really good idea of how you’re going to tackle them in those conditions – it’s a different beast.”
Australia will take on India in a challenging five-match Test series beginning on November 22.
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