Kings XI CEO Satish Menon termed the classical right-hander as 'extremely talented' and also stated that the franchise had always seen leadership spark in him and as a result, he was given the top job at the best possible time.

"He is extremely talented, and the world has seen his exploits. We see a spark of leadership in him, and have been in fact waiting for an opportune time to give him captaincy. We thought this was the right year to do so, under the guidance of Anil Kumble. I don’t think there could have been a more opportune time to make him the captain," Menon told timesnownews.com.

"It is not about breaking the bank. The analytics team had figured out that they want him, and charted a plan. They also budgeted for him, although I am unsure about the specific price they had decided. Then, during the auction, you know how things are; we have to take decisions instantly. Maxwell has been a part of the system, he knows exactly how things function here. We don’t have any expectations as such. You can’t tell a cricketer that these are my expectations. We expect him to be in his usual form. If we look back, Dubai has been his happy hunting ground. He seems to be in good nick. The only thing that can be assured is that he is at home here in Kings XI."