Manchester: Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell and left-handed batsman Alex Carey both hit brilliant hundreds as Australia secured a dramatic series victory against world champions England in the third ODI at Old Trafford, Manchester on Wednesday (September 16).
The circumstances that his team was in when he came to the crease, decreased to 73 for 5 in a chase of 303, was ‘hit or bust’, said Maxwell. He struck a 90-ball 108 and was involved in a 212-run stand for the sixth wicket with Carey (106 off 114) as Australia won by three wickets in 19.4 overs.
💯 Glenn Maxwell ➞ 108
— ICC (@ICC) September 17, 2020
💯 Alex Carey ➞ 106
👬 Partnership ➞ 212
Maxwell and Carey’s double-century stand in the third match is an Australia record for the sixth wicket in men’s ODIs 🔥 pic.twitter.com/kHI6cystqT
Having brought down the calculation to 21 off 18, Maxwell fell to Adil Rashid in the 48th over while Carey got out to Jofra Archer in the 49th, leaving Australia needing 10 off the last over. Mitchell Starc managed a straight six off the opening delivery in the final over, which was bowled by Rashid, before sweeping the fourth to the fine-leg boundary to help Australia secure a exciting win.
“There wasn’t much to lose so I thought I could put a bit more pressure on them and make the most of that short boundary early on and just back my bat swing. I was able to get a couple clean early on in the innings and then started to build with Alex,” Maxwell said.
“And I knew once I got into the innings they would bowl a bit differently to me and I might be able to cash in on some loose balls but everything pretty much went to plan. The way our partnership was built was outstanding and I am really happy to get that result,” said the 31-year-old all-rounder Maxwell.
“I was thinking we haven’t got much to lose so I had a bit of freedom to try and take the bowling on and put some pressure on them. I suppose coming in 5-73 it’s probably hit or bust at that stage. If we lost another wicket in the next five or 10 overs it was pretty hard to expect the bowlers to do the job,” he further added.
“So, once we started to build that partnership and take a couple of risks early and get away with them, we were able to rise with that momentum going forward. And then having trust in my own technique and in my partner at the other end, to get us to the point where Starcy and Cummo could get us over the line at the end was pretty awesome.”
The double century association between Maxwell and Carey was the highest sixth wicket stand for Australia in ODIs – third highest sixth wicket stand overall – as they went past Michael Hussey and Brad Haddin’s partnership of 165 against West Indies in 2006. “I really enjoyed the partnership, seeing him get his first ODI hundred is pretty nice, he works so damn hard,” Maxwell said.
“He’s one of the great guys to be around, I see him every day, he makes me smile. To see him get the rewards at the other end was extremely special and to beat the number one team on their home soil was awesome.”
“To take them down on home soil when they have been playing pretty consistent cricket over here and for us to start our summer off after a long time in lockdown with a series win against them was pretty incredible for this group. We’ve worked so hard since coming together and it is just great that everyone could do the work back at home and when we got over here throughout the practice matches and training to get ourselves up to take on the world’s best and beat them on their home soil.”
“I was lucky that I was able to train with Finchy during lockdown and we were able to talk about my role and talk about certain things and I had so much clarity on what he expected from me. I think that gave me good clarity out there, I was able to take the game on with the clarity he gave me before the tournament started and ride on that momentum and knowing I had the backing of him was awesome. I always feel like I have batted better for Australia when we have been in a bit of trouble. To be able to get us through that and to a position we could win the game was really pleasing,” said Maxwell whose stability won him the player of the series award.
