Maxwell miracles add a new chapter

Glenn Maxwell's latest bout of boundary-line acrobatics has set the cricket world alight and for the Australia allrounder it was just another clip to add to the growing highlight reel.

Western Australia young gun D'Arcy Short was winding up, having already smashed two big sixes as he passed fifty. And as the left-hander's lofted drive from spinner Jon Holland sailed high into the Perth sky, it seemed he was about to add a third.

Until Maxwell intervened.

Wired into Nine's Wide World of Sports broadcast, Maxwell was immediately able to talk fans through the ins and outs of the jaw-dropping catch.

"I was lucky it came directly at me the whole way, so I had a bit of time to think about what I was going to do," Maxwell told commentators Tom Moody and Ian Chappell.

"I heard Cameron White yelling from across the ground telling Robbie Quiney to come and help me out. I saw Bobby out of the corner of my eye, so just make sure I could get it to him."

Maxwell revealed the practice of flicking balls up to gather again safely inside the rope or, even better to a nearby teammate, was something practiced regularly – with varying degrees of success.

"I practised it a few times today and dropped every single one of them. Nice for the one in the game to stick," Maxwell said.

"I think its key you have to know where the boundary is. Because I basically hadn't moved, I was aware the boundary was about a foot (30cm) behind me.

"All I wanted to do was make sure I got two hands on it and give myself enough power to throw the ball back into Bobby, because I saw he was a little bit too far away for a flick straight up.

"It's something we practice a fair bit, especially with T20 cricket these days, you do a lot of boundary riding.

"Awareness of the rope is probably the main thing we try and work on."

In early 2015, at the height of the BBL|04 season, Maxwell was one of many caught out – if you'll pardon the pun – when Sydney Thunder's Josh Lalor took a catch leaping from beyond the boundary rope and landed back in the field of play.

"That's not out!!" Maxwell tweeted, and he was far from the only one. The outburst prompted the Marylebone Cricket Club – custodians of the Laws of cricket – to issue a clarification of a neglected October 2013 update to the Laws of cricket – precisely to account for the increase in athletic fielding on the boundary rope in Twenty20 cricket – that made it perfectly legal.

At Headingley last winter, Maxwell clutched at a firmly-struck ball by Liam Plunkett late in England's inning that was destined for six – but after taking the catch just inside the rope, Maxwell began falling out of bounds before flinging the ball in the air.

Image Id: ~/media/B69F0152190C4255A3446FF9FE0FF5C5 Image Caption: Oh what a feeling ... Maxi completes classic catch // Getty

He then stepped out of bounds before regathering his composure to leap back into the field of play and take a left-handed grab to claim a fair catch.

And it's far from the first time Maxwell has stunned with his onfield exploits that can run the full gamut from the sublime to the ridiculous.

The reverse-sweeps are a trademark – he once launched a reverse-swept six off the first ball of a domestic Twenty20 match in England. He isn't afraid to innovate, testing a 'behind-the-back' shot in the net session – to show off for junior cricketers – and his infamous first-ball leave in BBL|03 lingers long in the memory.

Image Id: ~/media/FF6B6084CE8840378E155E2C3CD32115 Image Caption: Cornetto in hand Maxwell moves in // Vsiualised Photography
Image Id: ~/media/387DCD8E2DDB45E284696C068D3A36FD Image Caption: Catch taken, time for an ice cream // Visualised Photgraphy

During his stint with Yorkshire in the 2015 winter, he even took a one-handed catch on the boundary while holding an ice-cream in a charity match.

Maxwell and Yorkshire were playing against local village club Bardsley when he reeled in the remarkable catch without dropping a half-eaten Cornetto.

After completing the catch, Maxwell took another bite of his ice cream before returning the ball, leaving even the dismissed batsman, Ed Clayton, to applaud his effort.