Image Credit- ICC
Glenn Maxwell found it difficult to accept his own
accomplishment when his incredible double century turned Australia’s seemingly
hopeless situation against Afghanistan into a win.
Maxwell put up what was dubbed the best performance in
ODI history, finishing at 201 off 128 balls, reaching his double and concluding
the match with a ninth six.
Maxwell was so near to retiring hurt after earning his
century that he spent a large portion of that time not moving at all owing to
cramps. In fact, Adam Zampa had to descend the steps in order to enter the
field.
“It’s so fresh at the moment I’m a bit numb to
it,” Maxwell told reporters. “It was great fun. It just felt like it
was me and Patty [Cummins] having fun out there. I’ll probably reflect a bit
more over the next few days and hopefully recover and get some movement back in
my hamstring and calves. It’s pretty raw at the moment.”
On the host broadcast, Ricky Ponting said: “I’ve
watched and played a lot of cricket, and I’ve seen nothing like
that…unbelievable scenes, he was done. He was down and out, he couldn’t
move.”
“We talked about coming off and trying to get
some work into my back and trying to loosen up my legs a little bit,”
Maxwell said. “The physio said it would be really hard for you to come
back out down the stairs after that. It probably made the job a little more
simple.
“Then we came up with let’s stay at the same end
for as long as you can, until you can at least walk at the other end if there
is an easy single. But for a while there it was ‘if I can get one or two
boundaries from the other end’ it didn’t really matter what happened the other
end. Because we got it to a run a ball by that stage. There was certain
planning, it wasn’t all just chaotic swinging.”