After four years away, Glenn Maxwell made just nine deliveries for Victoria in their match against South Australia in his return to the Sheffield Shield.

Maxwell scored 61 runs in the Victorian Premier League before being selected for the Sheffield Shield, Australia’s most prestigious first-class competition.

Maxwell, who is getting back in the saddle to serious cricket interestingly since breaking his leg last November, was excused LBW by Jordan Buckingham subsequent to scoring only five runs.

Glenn Maxwell's first innings back is a short one, out lbw for 5 #SheffieldShield pic.twitter.com/io83YAnkq6

— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) February 20, 2023

For the first time in 1218 days, Glenn Maxwell was participating in a Sheffield Shield match

His most recent appearance in the tournament was in October 2019.

The dynamic all-rounder played club cricket on Saturday and scored a stunning 61 to demonstrate that he was prepared to play for Victoria. He said he had put in “a lot of hard work” to get back into the game after suffering the injury in November of last year.

Maxwell was out for just five at the Junction Oval, indicating that his enthusiasm could not translate into a significant score. Just the most in-form Australian hitter not in India, Matt Short, put on a one-man act against South Australia.

Short, the Big Bash player of the year who also scored his first one-day hundred for the Vics last week, scored 70 as the home team only managed 169 runs.

Wes Agar, the younger brother of spinner Ashton, who was twice overlooked for Test selection and could be returning home from India, performed admirably for the visitors, scoring 5-54.

However, his excellent use of the ball was undone when the Rebacks, chasing a third victory in a row, were reduced to 5-75 at stumps, still 94 runs behind.

Maxwell wants to play in Australia’s March ODI series against India. However, he acknowledged that he was not yet fully primed.

“I think probably 80 per cent. I have a fair bit to go until I am fully fit for a one-day game, which is what I’m working towards. I won’t bowl, I’m still building up my loads and getting that natural body movement muscle memory going.” 

he said.

After the Test series in India, Australia will play an ODI series to prepare for the upcoming ODI World Cup. Their performance in India has been subpar. With his return to competitive cricket, Maxwell might be eligible for the ODI portion of the tour.

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The 34-year-old could even be in line for a surprise Test return in India if he had managed a few runs. In the first Test, which was played in Nagpur, the hosts prevailed by 132 runs and six wickets, respectively.