Glenn Maxwell at home with Royal Challengers Bangalore post encounter with Kolkata Knight Riders
Express News Service
CHENNAI: Even before the IPL auction in February, stars had aligned for Glenn Maxwell. That Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore – the eventual settlement for the all-rounder – would go big for him at the auction might have come as a surprise, but there was more to it.
Despite Maxwell tallying only 169 and 108 runs in his last two IPL seasons in 2018 and 2020, the two franchises believed in a different set-up. Without the burden of being the face of their overseas recruit, the Australian, they believed, could thrive.
Bangalore, especially, believed his close proximity to captain Virat Kohli and the feeling of making him wanted would do a world of good for a player, who had had mental health issues not so long ago.
From the moment, Bangalore bought him at the auction spending Rs 14.25 crore, they not only placed faith on him, but believed that in a team also having Kohli and AB de Villiers, there would be less pressure on Maxwell.
To place that kind of faith on a player who hadn’t crossed fifty in his last two IPL editions was a big punt. But it was the sort of trust that make players like Maxwell feel at home. The arrival of Sanjay Bangar as batting consultant, under whom Maxwell tallied 552 runs, also shouldn’t be overlooked. Bangalore have done all that they can to make him feel valuable.
