Aussie x-factor admits he had one eye on the 'balls faced' column as he set about plundering the fastest ton in World Cup history
How Magical Maxi conjured up 40 balls of mayhem
Battling illness as he came off a sleepless night and a golden duck in his last start, Glenn Maxwell admitted he "didn't really want to bat" before his record-breaking World Cup century in Delhi.
Against the Netherlands on Wednesday, Maxwell thrashed the tournament's fastest ever hundred, coming off nine fewer deliveries than the benchmark set by Aiden Markram only three weeks prior at the same venue.
His 40-ball effort also marked the quickest ton in any international match by an Australian. More importantly, it has lifted his side's net run-rate into the positives as the Dutch were swept aside by 309 runs, the biggest winning margin in a Cup match.
Maxwell had been laid a far better platform in the preceding match against Pakistan when he was promoted to No.3 following a 259-run opening partnership. He was out first ball. This time, the Aussies lost their sixth wicket after he had faced just seven deliveries.
"I was sitting in the changing room and I didn't really want to bat, which is a bit different than last game where I was way too eager to get out there," said the 34-year-old, who had been under the weather this week before his wife Vini and young son Logan arrived in India.
"We talked about arousal levels and I probably reached double maximum (against Pakistan) – if you couldn't tell. I was a little bit more chilled when I got out there.
"Didn't have many high hopes. I've been pretty cooked the last couple of days. Coincided with the sleepless night last night with the family over."
His duck against Pakistan meant he focused on easing himself into his innings as he joined fellow century-maker David Warner at the crease, only to see the opener dismissed before he had faced a ball.
Despite that, the allrounder hit five of his first 12 deliveries to the boundary. He then exploded in an extraordinary burst that saw Pat Cummins contribute just eight runs to their seventh-wicket stand of 103.
"It's a bit weird that I had to calm myself down for the first 20-odd balls," said Maxwell. "I think the circumstances of the timing of the wickets probably changed the way I would have gone about it if it was just me and Davey at the back end.
"I felt like I was just super selective. Even with the boundaries I was hitting, until I got to about 50 or 60, I was literally hitting them flat through the gap or picking my spots pretty clearly where I wanted to go.
"It was only the back end where I tried to just pump everything."
Maxwell conceded he had one eye on his balls faced column on the scoreboard, though was wary having fallen short of the fastest ton at the 2015 World Cup in similar circumstances against Afghanistan in Perth.
"I'm very aware of (previous records)," he said. "I love the fastest 50, fastest 100 records. I think they're pretty cool records. Sometimes to the detriment of myself, I've always probably pushed the boundaries a bit too much.
"I think against Afghanistan in 2015, I was 88 off 37 and I was like, ‘I'm getting it (a ton) in the next two balls and I hit one straight to cover and butchered it. I think I got my the fastest hundred next game (against Sri Lanka, off 51 balls)
"I've been in those positions before I could make fast hundreds when I get on a run – I know I'm difficult to bowl to. It's just about getting past the first ball."
Maxwell insisted he had remained unfazed about middling ODI returns in recent times.
In his previous 16 one-dayers leading into Wednesday's match, he had averaged 18 and not passed 33. His strike had also been down, registering at 97.09, well short his career rate of 125.38.
"I'm not too worried about people saying that I haven't made runs in ODI cricket because it doesn't really matter, especially my role in one-day cricket," said Maxwell.
"It's so similar to T20, so I just draw on those experiences, knowing that if I do get it right on the day, hopefully my team will be winning."
Australia's 2023 ODI World Cup fixtures
October 8: Lost to India by six wickets
October 12: Lost to South Africa by 134 runs
October 16: Defeated Sri Lanka by five wickets
October 20: Defeated Pakistan by 62 runs
October 25: Defeated Netherlands by 309 runs
October 28: v New Zealand, Dharamsala, 4pm AEDT
November 4: v England, Ahmedabad (D/N), 7.30pm AEDT
November 7: v Afghanistan, Mumbai (D/N), 7.30pm AEDT
November 11: v Bangladesh, Pune, 4pm AEDT
Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Sean Abbott, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner, Adam Zampa
2023 World Cup standings
| Team | M | W | L | T | N/R | NRR | Ded. | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
IND
|
9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.57 | 0 | 18 |
|
2
SA
|
9 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.261 | 0 | 14 |
|
3
AUS
|
9 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.841 | 0 | 14 |
|
4
NZ
|
9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.743 | 0 | 10 |
|
5
PAK
|
9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -0.199 | 0 | 8 |
|
6
AFG
|
9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -0.336 | 0 | 8 |
|
7
ENG
|
9 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | -0.572 | 0 | 6 |
|
8
BAN
|
9 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 0 | -1.087 | 0 | 4 |
|
9
SL
|
9 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 0 | -1.419 | 0 | 4 |
|
10
NED
|
9 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 0 | -1.825 | 0 | 4 |
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
T: Ties
N/R: No results
NRR: Net Run Rate
Ded.: Deductions
PTS: Total points