'Giving me the most grief...': Glenn Maxwell hoping to revive Test career hampered by freak injury

Glenn Maxwell is hoping that he can revive his Test career next year but a freak leg break is casting doubt on it.

Glenn Maxwell may be a regular in international cricket for Australia but he will most probably not be wearing a baggy green when they host India later this year for a five-match Test series. The mercurial all-rounder is regarded as one of the most valuable limited-overs cricketer in the world but his Test career never quite picked up in a similar manner.

Maxwell played the last of his seven Tests against Bangladesh in Chattogram in September 2017 (Getty Images)

While he was initially not picked due to the selectors not finding a place for him in the squad, his ommission in recent years despite his ability against spin has been more due to injuries that came at the worst possible times.

“It’s still my leg. It’s what is giving me the most grief since breaking it, so it’s still a work in progress. It’s something I have to work hard on every day to make sure it’s in a position where I feel like I can get through a full day of cricket unscathed and hopefully pain-free,” Maxwell told reporters.

Maxwell was tipped to make a comeback to Test cricket in late 2022 during Australia's tour of India. However, he suffered some gruesome injuries in a freak accident at a friend’s 50th birthday in November 2022 and Maxwell says that he continues to deal with the after effects of that. The right-hander has not played a Test since the 2017 tour of Bangladesh and only has two first-class matches to his name since the end of 2019.

‘Hope I can play in Sri Lanka’

Maxwell, who was among the heroes for Australia in the run to the 2023 World Cup title in India, said that he is hoping to get his body ready for Australia's tour of Sri Lanka in February next year. The tour is set to include two test matches. While Maxwell admitted that he may not be able to play too many domestic matches in the Sheffield Shield, selectors could think “out of the box” based on the conditions in Sri Lanka.

"It would be great if I could get my body into a position where I can play over (in Sri Lanka), but as far as Shield cricket, I’m not sure how much they’ll take that into consideration, and whether or not I need to prove I can get through four days of cricket before I play Test cricket.

“Hopefully my body’s going really well and I can put my hand up for the Test stuff as well, but there’s still a lot of work left to do and a lot of boxes to tick before then,” he said.