There comes a huge blow for the Aussies as their star all-rounder Glenn Maxwell has been ruled out of the ODI World Cup 2023 match against England on Saturday due to a concussion injury in a golf-related incident on Monday evening.
Maxwell was holding onto the back of a golf cart on the way back from the clubhouse to the team bus in the early evening of his day off when he lost his grip & sustained an injury. It was a short journey of 300 meters & there were not enough carts available for all to be seated. He will be under concussion protocols for almost six to eight days.
“He’s been honest with the information he’s provided,” head coach Andrew McDonald said. “He’s doing fine. He’ll start some light exercises today and we feel as though it will be a reasonably straightforward return-to-play protocol. I suppose the fortunate part was there was no other injury sustained which could have been a lot worse than it currently is.
“I think it rattled everyone to be fair once it came to the conclusion there was a concussion and he was going to miss a game. There was nothing untoward in the behavior throughout the day: it was a clear-cut accident and unfortunately, it’s compromised what we are doing as a team,” McDobald added to his statement.
Notably, last year Maxwell broke his leg when he slipped at his friend’s birthday party which ruled him out for nearly five months.
How did Glenn Maxwell suffered a concussion Injury
The Latest Injury setback means Australia will need to find a replacement for Glenn Maxwell for their game against England. The management might include Marcus Stoinis or Cameron Green in the squad while Marnus Labuschagne now favoured to retain his place in the XI. Recently Glenn Maxwell smashed a 40-ball 100 against the Netherlands which marked the fastest century of the ODI World Cup 2023. He also played a vital role as a second spinner along with Adam Zampa during the same fixture. But in Maxwell’s absence, Travis Head will support Zampa with the ball.
The entire Australian squad were given two full days off after their win against New Zealand in Dharamsala with players using it the way they want to. Some Australians stayed back in the Himalayas & arrived in Ahmedabad on Wednesday while a no of players & support staff played in an internal golfing tournament. While playing in the golfing tournament Maxwell suffered a concussion injury. For the unversed, Jonny Bairstow too had broken his leg last year due to an injury he sustained while playing golf. But McDonald didn’t blame golf & stressed that the game shouldn’t be banned as it’s important for players to play some other sport as well.
Meanwhile, there are chances of Australia going with Labuschagne in the Playing XI & supporting with the ball as well. He will be tasked to fulfill spin responsibilities in the absence of Maxwell. Along with Warner, Labuschagne is one of the two players who have played 14 ODIs since the start of September despite being omitted from the ODI World Cup 2023 squad. In the ongoing World Cup 2023, Labuschagne has scored 201 runs at 33.50, striking at 77.30, and has found himself batting at Nos. 4, 5, and 7.
Coming to Australia’s form in the ongoing tournament, they lost the first two matches in the marquee event but bounced back & registered four gleaming wins to secure a spot in the semi-finals. After the England game, they face Afghanistan and Bangladesh to round out the group stage.
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