Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell is ready to perform at the highest level in the ICC World Cup 2023 which is set to begin on October 5 in India.
Maxwell, 34, is one of Australia’s most experienced players with 234 international appearances to his name. He is seven runs short of reaching the 6000-run mark in international cricket.
The 34-year-old stated that he is 100% ready for the mega event after recovering from an ankle injury which forced him to miss Australia’s tour to South Africa right before the World Cup.
Maxwell, who broke his leg last November and was out for several months, made an astounding comeback in One Day Internationals (ODIs) by taking 4-40 against India in the last ODI, preventing a whitewash, and then powering his side to a massive 351 total against Pakistan in a World Cup warm-up match.
"I feel 100% ready for that first game," Maxwell told reporters. "We were testing out a few things like how we tape the ankle, how it bounces back after being a bit sore, stiff and not warming up.
"I had two different spells out on the field bowling as well as running around, just to see how the ankle reacts when it is put under a bit of duress.
"Though I batted for a while I left a fair bit in the tank running between the wickets, I didn't have to bat at the back end so wasn't moving around too much. To counter that I was having a bowl to see how it feels coming on cold.
"For me personally, that was the perfect test to see how it goes under those different bits of duress and I feel like I have come out the other side really well."
It must be noted that for this year’s mega event, where pitches will support spinners, Australia only have one with Adam Zampa but Maxwell believed that he can contribute with the ball whenever needed.
"The ball's coming out as well as it ever has," he said.
"I'm probably at that place in my career where I don't ... (need) to train as much with my bowling, I've got a real nice clarity about how it's coming out and what I need to do."
Australia’s Squad for ICC World Cup 2023
Pat Cummins (c), Steve Smith, Alex Carey, Josh Inglis, Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Mitch Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner, Adam Zampa, Mitchell Starc.