I probably didn't score as many runs as I could have: Glenn Maxwell

Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell is dropped from the Australia’s 15-man squad for the upcoming ODI series against Sri Lanka on the back of his poor run in the One-Day Internationals (ODIs). He has taken the “full responsibility” for not making it into the squad as he was averaging below 10 in his past 10 ODI matches.

“I’ve taken it pretty well. I think having this opportunity (playing for Australia A) at the same time softens the blow a little bit,” Maxwell told the media in Townsville on Thursday. “It gives you an opportunity to prove them (selectors) wrong or show them that you really want to be back there.”

“The silver lining is to come up to Queensland and get on turf and out of the indoor setup. It is hard work to work on your game indoors because it becomes easy and a bit boring,” said Maxwell who is currently playing in Queensland for Australia A in their two four-day matches against South Africa A.

He believes that he got enough opportunities and it is his mistake that he couldn’t enough runs being the batting all-rounder in the side. “No, I think they (selectors) showed enough (loyalty), if you look at the last 10 ODIs I didn’t score enough runs,” he said. “If you’re in the top six, then you’re a batting all-rounder first and I probably didn’t score as many runs as I could have. I fully take responsibility for that and have made sure I’ve moved on.”

Also read – Virat Kohli was a case study during the GST Bill debate in Rajya Sabha

The 27-year old believes that the four-day matches in Queensland will help to sharpen his game. “I’ve been in really good form in that format over the past few years,” he said. “Statistically, it is my best format, which people don’t seem to grasp very well.”

South Africa beat Australia A in the first four-day match at Brisbane, in which Maxwell had scores of 0 and 38. He said that he hopes to spend more time in the middle in the match starting on Saturday in Townsville. “It’s about accumulating big totals and not the flashy stuff,” he said. “I was too eager to get bat on the ball (in the first innings). I want to show what I did the last two Shield seasons and score lots of runs.”

Also read – Feroz Shah Kotla to host New Zealand Warm-up match