Cricket Australia on Thursday announced the 16-member squad for the upcoming ODI series against India which will kick-start on March 17.
All-rounders Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh and pacer Jhye Richardson were all included in Australia’s squad having missed considerable time through their respective injuries.
After more than three months away from professional cricket, Maxwell is still struggling with his ‘mental application’ as he looks to build his intensity ahead of a crucial period.
Maxwell had suffered a broken leg while Marsh sustained an ankle injury, with both of them undergoing surgical procedures to recover from the setbacks. Richardson meanwhile, suffered a soft tissue problem.
Speaking after the announcement of Australia’s squad, Maxwell hinted that he is still working on the mental side of things, having only just played his first competitive cricket match in Victoria’s Marsh Sheffield Shield victory over South Australia.
“During the Shield game, probably mentally batting in that position I wasn’t quite there," Maxwell was quoted as saying in a report by cricket.com.au.
“In the nets you can do all the hard work but to get that mental application back in the game is obviously a different thing. That’s probably something I’m working on over the next few games to try and get a few more hits out there and build up that match intensity," added the 34-year-old.
Maxwell also said that having been away from cricket for such a long time, he will try to play as many games as possible to get back his rhythm ahead of the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 later this year.
“Having not played for three-and-a-half months, I made a conscious decision to make sure I filled up my calendar with cricket to lead into that World Cup of the back end of the year," the all-rounder stated.
“He continued, “We’ve got the one-day series which is going to be a big series especially with the World Cup in India and will be a good opportunity for us to try and work out some things and get our game plan ready as well as having the IPL straight after it."
Marsh who is also returning to full fitness like his compatriot hinted that he is not bowling at the moment, and he might not be seen rolling his arm in the upcoming tour. But, the 31-year-old added that he decided to get his surgery done only to prolong his career.
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“I haven’t started bowling yet, so we’ll progress that over the next few weeks. I’m confident in myself to play as a batsman, but I’ve always loved playing as an all-rounder, bowling allows me to be in the game at all times and I’ll continue to be an all-rounder for as long as I possibly can."
The first match of the ODI series will be played in Mumbai, followed by the second ODI in Visakhapatnam on March 19 and the final fixture in Chennai on March 22.
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