Turbulent 2016 blessing in disguise for Glenn Maxwell

Turbulent 2016 blessing in disguise for Glenn Maxwell

One month ago, Australian allrounder Glenn Maxwell's stuttering international career seemed at the crossroads. Having been dropped from Australia's One-Day International (ODI) team in the middle of last year, the 28-year-old was on the outer after a public spat with his Victorian state captain Matthew Wade.

Maxwell, forever polarising, copped a rebuke from Australia's leaders and fined for his outburst. His outcry undoubtedly was the reasoning behind his omission during the Chappell-Hadlee series and one wondered about Maxwell's international prospects.

After scoring an ODI half-century on return to international cricket against Pakistan and being included in Australia's Test tour of India, Maxwell has been given a lifeline and now is afforded with a golden opportunity to resurrect a career that has teased numerously.

Maxwell said his turbulent 2016 could turn out to be a blessing in disguise. "I have had so much time to sit down and reflect," Maxwell told reporters in Melbourne on Sunday (January 15). "When you get that time away, you actually think about where you want to be either the next year or the year after that. I suppose I was really at peace for a while there."

Amid the disappointment, Maxwell said he picked himself off the canvass by rekindling a love for the game. "Instead of putting so much pressure on myself, I tried to go out there and enjoy it a little bit more," he said. "You can get caught up in results a lot as a cricketer and that can drive your mood a lot of the time ... to reignite that love just by playing park cricket was perfect timing.

"Since then I have just tried to look at it a bit more positively, don't try and worry about it," he added.

Maxwell received a berth to India because of a tantalising skill-set seemingly suited to the subcontinent. Accordingly, all three of his Tests have been in Asia due to being regarded as one of the country's best players against spin and his bag of tricks also includes deft off-spin and magnetic fielding.

If he does indeed play in India, it will be Maxwell's first Test since late 2014 during Australia's ill-fated tour of the UAE. "I had a really good opportunity in Abu Dhabi to really nail down a spot and make that number six position my own, I probably let a good opportunity slip," he said.

"I was hoping for a long time that it wasn't going to be my last Test ... I thought if I could play to the best of my ability, I thought I would get another opportunity," Maxwell said.