For belittling Wade, ‘pained’ Maxwell fined

Sydney, December 3

Australia cricketer Glenn Maxwell has been fined for ‘disrespectful’ comments made against teammate Matthew Wade.

Maxwell, who was recalled to the ODI squad for Sunday’s match against New Zealand to be played here, had said on Thursday that it was “painful” for him to bat behind wicketkeeper Wade for Victoria in the domestic Sheffield Shield competition.

Australia skipper Steven Smith today revealed that Maxwell had been fined for his comments. “Everyone was disappointed in his comments. I’ve expressed that with him myself and spoke to the team,” Smith said. “I thought what he said was very disrespectful to a teammate and his Victorian captain. The leadership group got together and we decided to fine Glenn. We thought that was a sufficient punishment.”

“He was shattered when he heard his punishment. I don’t think he thought the words came out the way they actually did,” Smith said. “We’ve moved on from that now. We’ve fined him and expressed our disappointment towards what he said and moving on and trying to focus on this game tomorrow.”

What Maxwell said

“That’s probably a little bit painful at times. I think probably batting below the wicketkeeper is also a bit painful as well,” Maxwell had said about batting at No. 8 for Victoria. “I think the wicketkeeper should be batting at seven unless you’re trying to squeeze an extra bowler into your line-up. I’ve been just trying to bat wherever I can and trying to make as many runs as I can. I got a hundred from No. 8 for Victoria so there are always opportunities to get runs wherever you are in the order.” — Agencies