Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell has opened up about how he made the move from being a budding medium pacer to now bowling off-spin. Although Maxwell is known for his big-hitting batting earning him the nickname ‘The Big Show’, he can also be entrusted with the ball, picking 140 wickets in 346 T20 matches, and has also picked 34 wickets in 84 T20Is.
“I was playing for the Victorian U-19 side. When I got picked, it was as a medium pace, not off-spin, middle-order batter position. I really liked my pace bowling. I worked with David Saker coming through the youth programs and in the academies growing up. He said, ‘I don’t think pace bowling is for you,” said Maxwell on RCB Podcast.
After hearing the advice from Saker, it was a no-brainer for Maxwell to move into bowling off-spin apart from the circumstances in his stateside Victoria. “I made the easy transition to bowl off-spin. The Victorian side was looking for a batsman who was also an off-spinner in their side. As a 19-year-old it was an easy decision to give up the seam ups and move on to off-spin.”
To his good fortune, Maxwell found coaches specializing in spin bowling who helped him make a smooth transition. “Luckily enough, I was able to work with a lot of really good spin coaches who changed a medium pacers action who bowled off-spin to a guy who could be relied upon with some off-spin bowling.”
Maxwell retained alongside Virat Kohli and Mohammed Siraj by Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) ahead of the mega auction in February, will miss the first week of the IPL 2022 due to his upcoming wedding with his fiancé Vini Raman. Due to his wedding, Maxwell is also going to miss Australia’s white-ball tour to Pakistan as well.
He was last seen in action for Australia during the five-match T20I series at home against Sri Lanka, which the current men’s T20 World Cup Champions won 4-1. In that series, Maxwell clinched the Player of the Series award, scoring 138 runs in five matches apart from picking a solitary wicket.
