India tour will be real test for Australia, says Maxwell

Maxwell, who has played for several Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises, and by his own admission is eyeing to cement the number 6 spot in the lineup, said the visitors need to improve their shot selection to tackle India’s spin attack. 

“You’ve got to be adaptable and you’ve got to be able to change your game almost mid-innings. So, it’s going to be a real test for everyone,” Maxwell said.  “Even for the Indian players, you watch them, they go through different stages of their innings from sweeping to using their feet, to playing off the back-foot — they change all the way through their innings.” “Hopefully, we can do similar stuff and work on our play of spin because it’s going to be pretty key,” he added. 

The 28-year-old, currently in New Zealand with the OneDay International squad for the Chappell-Hadlee series, also pointed out that one has to prepare multiple strategies to be successful in Indian conditions. “I’m not sure it’s a place you ever really feel comfortable. It’s a place where you’ve got to work so hard to get your runs, and you’ve got to have different strategies at different times of a game,” the 28-year-old said. “That’s probably what I’ve learned, you can’t go in there with just one strategy and stick to it,” he added.