In a thrilling encounter between Australia and Afghanistan in the 2023 World Cup on Tuesday, November 7, Glenn Maxwell’s outstanding performance earned him praise from former cricketer Harbhajan Singh. Afghanistan had set a challenging target of 292 runs at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
Maxwell’s remarkable innings of an unbeaten 201 runs from just 128 deliveries played a pivotal role in Australia’s three-wicket victory with 19 deliveries to spare.
In a discussion with Star Sports, Harbhajan expressed his admiration for Glenn Maxwell’s innings.
“He’ll be remembered for this innings. It’s the best of his life. If he tops this, he’ll surprise himself. Such performances come around once in a century,” Harbhajan said.
Harbhajan Singh went on to draw parallels between Maxwell’s performance and Kapil Dev’s iconic innings in the 1983 World Cup.
“You mentioned Kapil Paaji and his 175-run innings, unseen but now felt. India faced a similar situation, and just imagine the knock Kapil Paaji would have played in those circumstances,” he added.
In the 1983 World Cup, India faced a challenging situation. They were 17/5 in a league-stage game against Zimbabwe at Tunbridge Wells. Kapil Dev’s remarkable innings of an unbeaten 175 off just 138 deliveries turned the game around, taking India to a total of 266/8, leading them to a crucial victory by 31 runs.
Harbhajan Singh highlighted the resonance between Maxwell’s performance and Kapil Dev’s historic innings, emphasizing the rarity of such outstanding contributions in cricket.
While noting that comparisons between the two innings are not fair, Harbhajan Singh believes Glenn Maxwell’s performance might surpass Kapil Dev’s.
“I’d argue that this is an even superior innings because Maxwell was injured. Despite not being able to run, he continued hitting boundaries and sixes. Moreover, this knock occurred during a chase, whereas Kapil Dev’s was in setting a target. While I avoid direct comparisons, I simply want to salute Maxwell for his extraordinary effort,” he concluded.