‘I haven’t given up’: Glenn Maxwell eyes return to Test cricket

Strong comments by World Cup hero Glenn Maxwell has given fresh hope to Australian cricket fans ahead of the Test summer.

Australian star Glenn Maxwell still harbours ambitions of a return to Test cricket despite being absent from the longest format for more than six years.

Maxwell, 35, last played Test cricket in Bangladesh in September 2017 but said he “hasn’t given up” returning to the format despite finding almost no opportunity to play domestic red-ball cricket.

Speaking at Melbourne airport on Thursday night after making a mid-T20 series return from India along with World Cup teammates, Maxwell conceded it would be a “drastic change” the selectors would be unlikely to make to include him in the Test squad this summer but still wanted to be in future plans.

“Different formats, different timings, different conditions … the Test squad is playing good cricket at the moment, so it’s not like they’ve got a thousand spots open and available for anyone to come in who hasn’t played any red-ball cricket,” Maxwell said.

Maxwell is one of only five Australians to have scored a Test century in India in the last decade after he posted a hundred in the third Test at Ranchi in 2017. Picture: Sajjad Hussain / AFP

“I think it would be hard to see any drastic changes like that, I think that would be too extreme.”

In his seven Tests, all overseas, Maxwell has made 339 runs at 26.07, including a century against India in March 2017.

But his first-class career since then has been limited to sporadic appearances for Victoria and in English domestic cricket.

“I haven’t given up – I think I’ve just got to be realistic about the timings of the way I’ve been playing my white-ball cricket … you play a World Cup and you don’t play any Shield cricket, you play at the back end of the summer in the white-ball formats and you don’t play any Shield cricket,” Maxwell said.

“It’s just been the way it’s gone for the last 10 years of my career, really.”

Mitch Marsh, who is resting ahead of the first Test against Pakistan, says he will enjoy every Test he is selected for and bat the same way each time. Picture: Morgan Hancock / Getty Images

A two-Test tour of Sri Lanka in February 2025 has been floated by commentators as a possible opportunity for a Maxwell comeback, but he would likely have to displace Mitch Marsh, who said he had found a more “consistent method” to fuel his impressive form across all formats.

Marsh told reporters in Perth on Thursday that he was unsure of his future in the side but would enjoy every match he played, hopeful of retaining his place for his first Test at Perth Stadium.

“I’m past battling, I’m here to enjoy my cricket and have fun,” Marsh said.

“I absolutely love playing for Australia. I worked really hard to get another opportunity during the Ashes and my attitude is ‘what will be, will be’, so I’ve done everything I can.

“The way I’m going to bat won’t change. I feel like I’ve found my most consistent method over the last couple of years and that’s allowed me to really enjoy my cricket.”