Was extraordinary to see abuse Glenn Maxwell copped on social media, states John Hastings
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Former Australian all-rounder John Hastings, who was Glenn Maxwell's teammate at Victoria, has stated that the latter's break was something that was always coming due to the kind of abuse he copped on social media. Hastings also lauded Maxwell's bravery for coming forward and taking up the issue.
On October 31, in the wake of Australia's win in the 2nd T20I over Sri Lanka, it was announced by Cricket Australia that Glenn Maxwell would be taking an indefinite break from all forms of cricket, citing mental health issues. The all-rounder received instant support from cricketers and fans around the world and everyone, including Australian coach Justin Langer, revealed that they would lend a helping hand to Maxwell to get back to the game as soon as possible.
One person who knows Maxwell really well is former Australian all-rounder John Hastings, who was also subsequently the 31-year-old's teammate at Victoria. Hastings has revealed that back in the day, he was flabbergasted by the kind of abuse Maxwell copped on social media and feels that it was just a 'matter of time' before something happened.
“Over the years it’s been extraordinary to see just how much grief Glenn actually cops on social media. It was just absolute abuse that he copped," Hastings was quoted as saying by foxsports.com.au.
"I was just like ‘mate, you’ve got to get off social media, you’ve got to stop worrying about this sort of stuff. I was shocked but this kind of thing was only a matter of time before it was going to happen. He takes things very personally and it’s a real shame that this has happened,” the 34-year-old added.
Hastings also believes that social media makes it easier for fans to target the players and lauded Maxwell for his bravery for taking up the issue and admitting that he needed a break from the game.
“For me it was definitely a bit of a shock but he’s brave enough to stick his hand up and say he needs a bit of time away to try and get these issues sorted."
Hastings represented Australia in 39 international matches, the last of which came at Birmingham against New Zealand in 2017.
