Australia will miss Glenn Maxwell but his health is priority, says Michael Hussey

11/03/2019

Michael Hussey feels that although Glenn Maxwell's absence will put a huge void in the Australian team, his mental recovery is very much important. Hussey has been appointed as the batting consultant of the team and will help build strategies for the team with the T20 World Cup at home in 2020.

Australia have never won the T20 World Cup and they have consistently under-performed in this tournament according to the high standards that they themselves have set over the years. Only once have they reached the final of the showpiece event, and that too was because of the heroics of Michael Hussey that they were able to beat Pakistan against all odds, only to get comprehensively beaten by an England team in the final in 2010. Hussey believes that this being the only trophy that they haven't won and the fact that the tournament is happening on Australian soil, the home team is preparing really hard to build a core team for next year's mega event.

"With the World Cup at home less than 12 months away, a lot of time and energy is going into not only building the team but also setting up strategies and to hopefully win the trophy. This is the one trophy that we haven't won and there are 20 games for the team to play before the World Cup and it is nice because it will help to build strategies and build some continuity in the team," Hussey told in a CricBuzz interview.

The IPL has been one of the biggest T20 leagues in the world over the past decade and a lot of Australian players have graced the league with their presence. Michael Hussey himself was an important part of the Chennai Super Kings squad as he won multiple titles with them and on the other hand, players like Glenn Maxwell from Kings XI Punjab, Smith from Rajasthan Royals, David Warner from Sunrisers Hyderabad, etc. have been their respective team's most crucial players. He highlighted the importance of gaining experience in these different leagues and how much it helps in bringing valuable experience to the national team.

" You learn so much from different leagues around the world and IPL is certainly the best T20 league in the world. So you learn from different players and coaches from around the world and bring back that information to try and help this team. So a lot of guys have played a lot of T20 cricket. But the most important thing is to get a group of guys that are good enough and stick with them and get that continuity and consistency in the team," said Hussey.

Hussey also spoke about Maxwell's announcement about his mental health and said that he was surprised to hear that. But he believes that it is important for Maxwell to be in a good mental space and that should be the priority and thus has shown his full support towards Maxwell's issue and the Australian team will give Maxwell ample time to get well and come back in the national setup

"I wasn't expecting it at all. He played beautifully and smashed all around the park in the first T20I. I think he has shown great courage to come out and talk about this and hopefully he can get some time out and come back healthy which is more important," he said.

" Yes, we lost a fantastic T20 player and an integral part of the team. But his health is probably the most important thing," Hussey concluded.