Maxi bounces back with a big bang

In-form batsman Glenn Maxwell is in an excellent mental state after overcoming a couple of disappointments throughout the summer to be named player of the tournament in the T20I tri-series, said stand-in Australia captain David Warner.

Maxwell broke through for a maiden Test hundred 12 months ago and looked to be finally making his way towards becoming a regular in all three formats for his country, only to be dumped for the Ashes as well as the ODI squad for the series against England in what were a couple of crushing blows for the Victorian. 

Publicly told by national captain Steve Smith he needed to "train smarter", the 29-year-old maturely dealt with the feedback – and the setback – to produce what has been to date an extremely productive summer. 

As well as shining in the tri-series, as he became the first Australian to post two centuries in T20 International cricket, Maxwell has already enjoyed his best summer in the JLT Sheffield Shield, having led all run-scorers at the Christmas break with 590 at 73.75, with three half-centuries and a career-best 278. 

Those runs came before his shock axing from the ODI squad, with selectors pointing to his below-par output in the format in his previous 20 or so appearances. 

But injuries opened the door for him to return late in the series, and after making 34 against England in Perth, he dominated the tri-series with scores of 40no, 103no, 39, 31 and 20no, as well as reminding everyone of his handy ability with the ball in Hobart in taking 3-10. 

"I'm very happy for him," said Warner after Australia sealed their tri-series triumph in Auckland. "You could see it hurt him to get dropped from that one-day team, and (missing out after) vying for Test selection at the beginning of the summer really looked like it hurt him. 

"He's the type of player that will just go back, get on with it and train, make sure he's getting the numbers on the board."

Maxwell now looms as an ace in the pack for Victoria, who currently sit at the bottom of the Shield ladder although they're less than six points from Tasmania in second. 

In a wide-open race to the final, the enigmatic allrounder could be decisive for the three-time defending champs. 

"When he goes into a game he's always 100 per cent committed to what he has to do," added Warner. 

"He's put the numbers on the board time and time again this year. 

"We're really happy with where he is, and his mental state with the game as well. 

"Hopefully he can continue that at the back-end of this Shield season, and then going into the IPL as well."

Maxwell took on the captaincy of Kings XI Punjab in last year's Indian Premier League with mixed results, as his side narrowly missed a finals berth. 

The right-hander has averaged 21.13 across the past three seasons of the prestigious tournament, well below his breakout season of 2014 in which he plundered 552 runs at 34.50 with a strike-rate of 187 to earn himself cult status in India.