Australian batting all-rounder Glenn Maxwell’s forgettable 2020 Indian Premier League (IPL) didn’t seem to matter at the 2021 auction as Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) ended up signing him for Rs 14.25 crore. RCB on Monday tweeted a video which showed how they, led by director of cricket operations Mike Hesson, planned their bid for Maxwell.
Hesson explained in the video why RCB was desperate to sign Maxwell regardless of what his form was last season. Maxwell had just 108 runs in 13 innings at an average of 15.
“The reason why we like him is that he’s the most dangerous in overs 10-15. Since 2014 in the middle overs, his average is 28 with a strike rate of 161.5. That would do us beautifully,” Hesson says in the video.
“And he can be a bowling option. We need somebody in that top 6 that can bowl 3-4 overs, but Maxwell can bowl two. Those numbers are exceptional,” he further says.
The RCB think tank predicted Chennai Super Kings (CSK) competing with them for Maxwell with Hesson calling the three-time champions “the only threat”. As it turned out, it was a bidding war between RCB and CSK that led to Maxwell’s price soaring to close to Rs 15 crore. The two teams were battling each other after Maxwell’s price crossed Rs 4.4 crore.
