Australia has won the Cricket World Cup on five separate occasions, which is three more than the next-best team. Can they add a sixth title to their trophy cabinet, extending their lead beyond comprehension? Only a fool would not have them as contenders, especially after taking into account their historical dominance, and contemporary skill. But can they do it with Glenn Maxwell as their fifth bowler?
Australia’s quest for a sixth World Cup title
Australia took their sweet time to announce a 15-man squad, and one noticeable omission was that of slow left-arm off-spinner Ashton Agar, who has made way for the most prolific concussion substitute of all time in Marnus Labuschagne. This has had a domino effect on Australia’s team composition, as they are now lacking a genuine second spinner, due to which they might be looking at Glenn Maxwell as their fifth bowling option.
The Glenn Maxwell dilemma: Fifth bowler or specialist spinner?
Of course, if you ask Australia’s chief selector George Bailey, he might disagree with the previous statement. In a recent press conference, Bailey spoke highly of Glenn Maxwell’s tweaking abilities, throwing his weight behind the belligerent all-rounder with the following words:
“I think it’s unfair on Maxwell to say he’s not a specialist spinner. Think his white-ball spinning record is pretty handy and you could very much consider him a frontline option.”
George Bailey’s perspective on Maxwell’s bowling
Let’s take a look at his numbers then, shall we? 64 wickets in 102 innings at an economy of under 6, and an average over 47. Those returns most definitely do not have ‘frontline spinner’ written over them. If there is an expectation that Glenn Maxwell will be bowling 10 overs per game, it is a fraught one. Also, if he is a frontline bowler, why does he average less than five overs per match?
Analyzing Maxwell’s bowling statistics
If we take those figures and compare them to Agar’s, you wonder if Bailey actually has a point. 21 wickets in 22 innings, with an economy slightly lower than Maxwell’s, and an average north of 45. Indeed those numbers are not good enough to warrant a spot as Zampa’s spin twin, on bowling ability alone. His batting average of 24.76 is also well below Maxwell’s 33.60, and if we look at strike rates, they belong to different weight classes altogether. But Agar has played as the main spinner. If Maxwell’s figures look bad when he’s presumably been used in favourable conditions, how would he have gone if he had to bowl out regularly?
So if Agar was supposedly Australia’s fifth bowling option, replacing him with Glenn Maxwell is not a massive downgrade. If anything, Maxwell has the edge over Agar in terms of experience, given that he has played ODI cricket for over a decade, including countless IPL campaigns. If you think about it, the grounds to withdraw Agar might be the fact that Australia did not plan to use him.
So can Maxwell really do a job for Australia as their fifth bowler?
The role of Maxwell in Australia’s bowling lineup
On surfaces that offer some grip and assistance, Maxwell could bowl his full quota as well, but on flatter decks, he would most likely struggle to hold his own. He’s not a terrible bowler, but ten overs against World Cup middle orders is an eternity if it’s not your full-time job.
Looking at the depth of all-rounders in Australia’s squad, they might not have to go down that route. If we assume that all of Marsh, Warner, Smith, Labuschagne, Carey, and Maxwell will combine to form Australia’s top 6, and all three of Australia’s prime pace bowlers in Starc, Cummins and Hazlewood will play in tandem with Zampa the specialist spinner, that still leaves one spot up for grabs in the playing XI.
That vacancy could be occupied by either Cameron Green, Marcus Stoinis, or even Sean Abbott for that matter, who has had an encouraging run with the bat in recent times. If Maxwell is to operate as a sixth bowling option, that is fine. But it looks like they want him as the fifth bowling option but with a whole host of junk and flotsam bowling around him. Green can bowl with pace, Stoinis bowls weirdly aggressive bouncers, if Head is fit he can dive some spin as well, and Marsh bowls a hard length. Australia has no real fifth bowler, they have two sixth bowlers and a bunch of part-timers.
Australia’s fifth bowler is more like your wacky neighbour inventing stuff from things you’ve left out in the garbage. They have enough resources in their squad to bowl 50 overs with ease and also possess a fair few batters who can offer some buffer overs if need be. There is no reason for Glenn Maxwell to be entrusted with the role of Australia’s fifth bowler, as he has enough support to share that load with.
Australia winning the World Cup is as much of a possibility as it has been since 1987, but their four main bowlers will have to be very good because the fifth bowler overs might get messy.
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