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Australia hopeful they've solved the Maxwell riddle

Glenn Maxwell has produced several eye-catching performances in ODI cricket this year giving Aaron Finch confidence the national side has landed on the perfect way to utilise his unique talents

You wouldn't know given the way he toyed with India's bowlers on Friday afternoon, but Glenn Maxwell didn't hit a single six in the recent Indian Premier League.

Maxwell blazed 45 from 19 balls, including five fours and three sixes, in the first Dettol ODI having been elevated from No.7 to No.5 in the order to capitalise on Australia's dominant position at 3-271 in the 41st over, after Marcus Stoinis was out for a golden duck.

It was almost a 'best of' highlights package as Maxwell mixed traditional and unconventional stroke play; a reverse sweep for six, an audacious ramp shot for four, a cover drive along the carpet and heave over the leg side, just to name a few.

He was dismissed trying to clear the rope in the 45th over, and given how well he was striking the ball, who knows how close he might have come to three figures had he batted for the rest of the innings.

Maxwell's movement up and down Australia's ODI batting order has been well documented – he's batted everywhere from opener to No.8 in his 114-game career – but he seems to have found a home at No.7.

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Having first filled that position in just his second ODI in 2012, the right-hander averages 48 with a strike rate of 121 when he comes in at the loss of the fifth wicket and scored a match-winning century to help beat England and clinch the series in September.

But he showed on Friday that he can still be just as dangerous up the order as a pinch hitter, and Australia captain Aaron Finch said the Aussies have landed on the right time in an innings to launch their enigmatic star.

"It's probably around that 40-over mark that we'd look at (promoting Maxwell)," Finch told cricket.com.au on Friday.

"Probably wouldn't look to do it too much earlier than that.

"It was unfortunate Stoin got out early but Maxi, he turned the game from probably a 340 (score) to a 370 there with raw skill, talent and bravery."

Maxwell’s innings on Friday was a remarkable turnaround from his form in the IPL where he averaged 15.42 and hit just nine fours and no sixes in 11 innings for the Kings XI Punjab.

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He even finished the tournament out of their side, but he looks to be a different player back in the green and gold colours of his country.

His late pyrotechnics, Steve Smith's rapid 62-ball century – the third fastest by an Australian in men's ODIs – and a hundred to Finch saw Australia pile up a huge 6-374.

It was their fourth-highest score on home soil and a huge boost from their average of 285 of batting first since the start of last year's 50-over World Cup.

Pushing their totals into the high 300s is the next evolution for his team, said Finch.

"It was nice to get some big partnerships and go on to that next phase of batting," he said.

"We've been around that 310, 320 mark but to go on to that 370 was really important."

Dettol ODI Series v India 2020

Australia ODI squad: Aaron Finch (c), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Alex Carey , Pat Cummins (vc), Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Moises Henriques, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Daniel Sams, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa

India ODI squad: Virat Kohli (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Hardik Pandya, Mayank Agarwal, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur.

First ODI: Australia won by 66 runs

Second ODI: November 29, SCG, 2.40pm AEDT

Third ODI: December 2, Manuka Oval, 2.40pm AEDT

*The matches and travel remain subject to any relevant government restrictions or requirements