Pat Cummins Offers Important Glenn Maxwell Update Ahead Of AUS v SA Cricket World Cup Semi-Final

Australia captain Pat Cummins has given an important update on all-rounder Glenn Maxwell ahead of their ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 semi-final game.

Australia are set to face off against South Africa in the second semi-final of World Cup 2023 on Thursday (Nov. 16) at the iconic Eden Gardens in the Indian city of Kolkata.

Maxwell, who underwent scans earlier this week, has been cleared to play the all-important semi-final against the Proteas, Cummins confirmed on the eve of the match. The Australian skipper revealed that Maxwell's scans were done only to ensure he wasn't reeling with an injury, following his historic knock against Afghanistan last week, where he suffered from cramps and back issues.

"Yeah, so Maxi's (Glen Maxwell) all clear, he's all good. Yeah, just precautionary so still a little bit sore yesterday and yeah, we get scans a lot of the time just to make sure that if there is something there, we know what we're dealing with. And fortunately, he came back all sweet, so he's fine," Cummins told reporters on Wednesday.

When a reporter asked Cummins about Australia's playing XI for the semi-final, the Australian captain replied: "Yeah, we'll announce that at the toss tomorrow so we're pretty sure but yeah, we'll let everyone know tomorrow."

Australia had a roller coaster outing against the Afghan side at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium on Nov. 7. During their chase of 292, Australia were seven down for just 91 runs. Maxwell was at the crease, with Cummins on the other end. The two put up a mind-boggling stand of 202 runs for the eighth wicket as the five-time champions secured a three-wicket victory with 3.1 overs still remaining.

Maxwell became Australian men's first double centurion in the One-Day Internationals (ODIs), while he became the first-ever batter to score a 200 during a chase in the 50-over format.

The availability of the 35-year-old explosive hitter for the upcoming match against South Africa was crucial, considering the player has been in great form. Maxwell has scored 397 runs in seven matches at an average of 79.40, including a century and double hundred and he has scored runs at a strike rate of 152.69.

Cummins heaped praise on Maxwell, saying Australia are "pretty glad he's in our team".

"I think in particular Maxwell's knock when we were right up against it, the game was over, but still one of the boys stood up to find a way to win. As a team, you grow an extra leg because you feel like you can win a match from anywhere and having someone like Maxi in your team is just a complete luxury. He's a superstar, he's a freak, he can win a game from anywhere," added Cummins, in regards to Maxwell's knock against Afghanistan.