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Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell has marked the Indian Premier League (IPL) as the last competition he will back out from in his career. Maxwell was recently retained by the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) ahead of the 2024 IPL mini-auction, and judging by his recent form, he still has a few quality years left in him.
Maxwell was part of the Australia squad until the third T20I in the five-match series against India. He scored a record-equalling fourth T20I hundred to hand Australia their solitary win of the series. Before that, he was part of Australia's 2023 ODI World Cup win, where he scored two hundreds, including a historic double ton in a chase against Afghanistan.
His preparations for the 2024 T20 World Cup will continue after the India series, as he will lead the Melbourne Stars in the upcoming Big Bash League (BBL) season. Maxwell stated the importance of the IPL in his career upon his return to Australia.
"The IPL will probably be the last tournament I ever play, as I will play the IPL until I can't walk anymore. I was talking about how good the IPL has been to me throughout my career; the people I've met, the coaches I have played under, the international players that you get to rub shoulders with, how beneficial to my whole career that tournament has been," he told reporters at the Melbourne airport.
"You're rubbing shoulders with AB [de Villiers] and Virat [Kohli] for two months, talking to them while watching other games. It's just the greatest learning experience that any player could ask for," Maxwell added.
Maxwell had a prolific stint with Kings XI Punjab (now renamed Punjab Kings) in his early days, which was followed by a string of poor seasons. He has found his mojo back with his current stint with RCB, where he has spent a couple of seasons.
"Hopefully a lot of our Australian players can get over to the IPL" - Glenn Maxwell
The IPL will be viewed as the ideal preparation avenue for the players, keeping the 2024 T20 World Cup in mind. The ICC tournament is scheduled to start on June 3, only a week after the 2024 IPL culminates.
Several players, who had opted out of the 2023 edition, have already placed their name in the pool, as per reports. The likes of Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc will mark their presence, along with World Cup final hero Travis Head.
Backing Australian players to get some valuable playing time ahead of the World Cup, Maxwell said:
"Hopefully a lot of our Australian players can get over to the IPL and get to work in slightly similar conditions to the West Indies, where it is a little bit drier, it will spin."
"As soon as we won this World Cup, we all talked about the refocus towards the next one'm hoping it's going be a really exciting summer for the BBL, with what is just around the corner," he added.
Will Australia be able to hold the ODI World Cup, T20 World Cup, and the World Test Championship all together? Let us know what you think.
