Stats: Maxwell endures one of the worst years for an Aussie batter

It’s been a rough week for the Australian Men’s side. 

Two days ago, they suffered their first ODI defeat at home in over two years. And now, less than 48 hours later, they’ve suffered their first ODI series loss at home in nearly six years, bringing to an end a 2,000+ day dominance that saw them whitewash sides left, right and centre in their own backyard. The timing of the loss, just a fortnight before the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, is far from ideal.

But it’s especially been a rough week for Glenn Maxwell. Actually, scratch that, it’s been a rough YEAR for Maxwell. 

The Big Show began his 2024 with a stunning 120* in a T20I against West Indies in Adelaide. It looked like he’d picked up from where he left off in 2023 and so a massive year was projected for the explosive right-hander. 

But reality has turned out to be different.

In the 16 international innings Maxwell has batted after the 120* against the Windies, he’s crossed 50 JUST ONCE. Amidst this, he endured a horror Indian Premier League (IPL) season where he averaged 5.78, amassing just 52 runs in the 10 matches he played.

The 36-year-old has just finished his ODI quota for the year with scores of 0, 16 & 0, taking his tally of ODI runs in the year to…55. 

Maxwell’s average of 9.16 in 2024 is the third-worst in a calendar year for any Aussie top-seven batter EVER!

Lowest ODI batting average for an Aussie batter (1-7) in a calendar year (min 6 inns)

5.00 - Greg Matthews in 1987

8.41 - Rod Marsh in 1982

9.16 - Glenn Maxwell in 2024

9.42 - Ian Harvey in 2002

In the last 21 years, Maxwell’s 2024 is, in fact, the only instance of an Australian top-seven batter finishing a calendar year with an average of less than 10.00. 

The ‘next-worst’ showing on the list is Aaron Finch’s 2022, where he averaged 12.42. A horror 2022 eventually led to Finch hanging up his boots from international cricket.

Lowest ODI batting average in a year for an Aussie batter (1-7) since 2003

9.16 - Glenn Maxwell in 2024

12.42 - Aaron Finch in 2022

13.83 - Brad Haddin in 2004

15.14 - David Warner in 2009

Maxwell is, of course, Maxwell, and we’ve seen him endure horror years like this in the past. And he’s bounced back from such years, too. 

But what will deeply concern the Aussie management is how ‘hit and miss’ he’s become. 

In his last 25 ODI innings, Maxwell has passed the 50-run mark just twice. And both those instances came in the 2023 ODI World Cup - the 106 (44) against the Netherlands and the record-breaking double ton against Afghanistan. 

Outside this, he’s been dismissed for 20 or under a whopping 16 times - which is in nearly 65% of the knocks he’s played.

These are hideous figures, even for someone who is as volatile as Maxwell. 

Since 16 June 2022, 66 batters have played 25 or more innings in the top seven in ODIs. Among them, only four have posted fewer than three fifty-plus scores: Basil Hameed (UAE), Dasun Shanaka (SL), Suryakumar Yadav (IND) and Glenn Maxwell (AUS).

History tells us that Maxwell is someone whose form can flip in a matter of seconds. But with the Champions Trophy less than four months away, it goes without saying that the Australian management will be slightly - if not deeply - concerned with the ODI performances of one of their x-factor players. 

Will the forthcoming T20Is bring about better fortunes for the 36-year-old?

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