Around 7-7:30 PM IST, Australia were 49/4 when Glenn Maxwell came out to bat at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai. The time back home was 12:30-1 AM and more than half of Australia would've gone to bed. Fast forward to 8:30 PM IST, Australia are reeling at 91/7. The time is 2 AM in Australia and surely, the die-hard fans of cricket in the country also must have switched off their TVs in disappointment and slept. But those who stayed awake even against their wish, venting their frustration out on their team for the abject performance against Afghanistan, witnessed history.
Yes, the entire Australia must have woken up on Wednesday (November 8) only to know that their 'Big Show' had done the unthinkable in the World Cup. Glenn Maxwell literally teared apart the Afghanistan bowling attack even as he battled extreme pain due to cramps. At one stage, he wasn't even able to run and the man just decided to stand and deliver and did it with utter ease.
For the unversed, Glenn Maxwell created history against Afghanistan becoming the first ever batter to smash a double century in a run-chase in ODIs. He smacked 21 fours and 10 sixes during his brilliant knock and single-handedly took his team past the target. With this win, Australia booked their place in the semifinals and now they have won their sixth match in the row. This is staggering after losing their first two matches of the tournament to India and South Africa.
Coming back to Maxwell, the former cricketers back home woke up shocked to know that the man who is sometimes criticised a lot for his attitude with the bat literally shattered records to take his team home. The likes of Michael Bevan, Damien Martyn who were the best middle-order batters for Australia in their era couldn't stop themselves from reacting to the Maxwell madness. Even Tom Moody, Adam Gilchrist among many others lauded Australia's number six and the entire cricketing fraternity is in awe of Maxwell for putting up the 'Big Show'.
Here's how former cricketers reacted to Maxwell's knock:
Australia will now face Bangladesh in their final league stage encounter on Saturday (November 11) at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune.
