"Would be very surprised if he does not dominate" - Shane Watson predicts Australia's standout player for 2025 Champions Trophy

Former Australian cricketer Shane Watson has picked batting all-rounder Glenn Maxwell to be the team's standout performer in the 2025 Champions Trophy. Hailing 'The Big Show', Watson opined that Maxwell could be at his best in the next two to three years and added that he would be surprised if the versatile cricketer does not dominate the Champions Trophy.

Australia will kick off their 2025 Champions Trophy campaign with a big match against Ashes rivals England at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Saturday, February 22. The Aussies have been placed in Group B, along with South Africa and Afghanistan. The Proteas hammered Afghanistan by 107 runs in Karachi on Friday in the opening match of the group.

In a column for ICC, Watson shared his views ahead of the Australia vs England clash and backed Maxwell to have a memorable Champions Trophy campaign. The former all-rounder, who is one of the four Event Ambassadors, commented:

“The stand-out player for me is Glenn Maxwell. With what I have seen recently, especially in the Big Bash, I believe he has some of his best cricket in front of him across the next two or three years and I would be very surprised if he does not dominate this Champions Trophy."

Maxwell scored 325 runs in nine innings at a strike rate of 186.78 in the 2024-25 Big Bash League. He was also a key performer in Australia's 2023 World Cup-winning side, contributing 400 runs in nine matches. Explaining the kind of impact Maxwell is capable of making in a big tournament, Watson added:

“He had that incredible innings against Afghanistan in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, where he scored a double century, but he has struggled to be consistent at times. That’s the nature of his role in the team. However, it now just feels like it has all fallen into place for him, and that’s with everything in his life, not just his cricket, so I think he will play a pivotal part.”

Battling cramps, Maxwell hammered a sensational 201* off 128 balls against Afghanistan in the 2023 World Cup match at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The right-handed batter clobbered 21 fours and 10 sixes as the Aussies recovered from 91-7 to chase down 292.

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"I think Australia will be very hard to beat" - Watson

ODI world champions Australia will be missing some of their big names in the 2025 Champions Trophy. Skipper Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Marsh have all been ruled out owing to injury. Also, all-rounder Marcus Stoinis announced a shock retirement from ODIs a few days before the start of the ICC event.

Watson, however, has backed the side being led by Steve Smith to put up a good show in the Champions Trophy. The 43-year-old asserted:

“I think Australia will be very hard to beat, even if their bowling squad is not quite as experienced as they might otherwise have been."

After the opening match against England, the Aussies will take on South Africa in Rawalpindi on February 25 and Afghanistan in Lahore on February 28.