Injured Australia star Glenn Maxwell hopeful of ICC World Cup participation

By SABC Sport
4th September 2023

Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell is adopting a cautious approach as he looks to recover from an ankle injury in time for the upcoming ICC World Cup in India.

The 34-year-old has not played for the Aussies since an ODI against India in Wankhede in March this year and has not featured at any level since his last appearance for English County Championship side Warwickshire in July.

Maxwell was expected to miss the ODI series in South Africa for paternity leave but had travelled with the squad ahead of the recently concluded T20 series before aggravating his injury upon arrival.

"I don't think I could have predicted how sore I was going to be once I got to South Africa," said Maxwell.

"But it was one of those things. Even when I went to train that day, I still felt fine.

"There was nothing wrong. Something just got impinged. I think one of the tendons around my ankle was a little bit inflamed, there's a bit of swelling, so it kept on catching which meant it just gave me a bit of pain."

According to reports, Glenn Maxwell is reportedly set to miss Australia's three-match ODI series in India later this month as he continues to recover, but he is optimistic about featuring in some capacity.

"Hopefully, the cortisone takes care of that and I can get back up and running to where I was just before I went to South Africa. We've probably just got to be a bit smarter going forward. Making sure that my preparation is a bit more managed, I think leading into a flight like that.

"I'm already back in the gym, so I'll probably get back into full training probably this week, so it won't be a long turnaround. It's just knowing that I'm not over the hurdle of the original injury yet," concluded the Victorian

Australia will take on South Africa in a five-match ODI series following their dominant 3-0 T20 series whitewash of their hosts before they head to India for a three-match series.

The Aussies are also set to play some warm-up matches for the ICC World Cup where they will take on the hosts India in their opening fixture in Chennai on October 8.