I was Shocked and Hurt by Match-Fixing Allegations - Glenn Maxwell

Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell said he was shocked as well as hurt after his maiden Test century got mentioned in a match-fixing documentary.

The match in question here is the Test between India and Australia in Ranchi in 2017. The third Test of the four-match series between the teams ended in a thrilling draw.

Batting first, Australia scored 451 in their first innings, courtesy centuries from Steven Smith and Glenn Maxwell. In reply, India piled on runs and declared their innings at 603/9, with Cheteshwar Pujara scoring a double century.

In their second essay, Australia were 204 for six before both the captains shook hands, as the game ended in a draw.

Earlier this year, Al Jazeera aired its documentary showing how match-fixing scandals are carried out. The Ranchi Test was also a part of it.

In the documentary, a criminal claimed two unnamed Australian batsmen were paid off to bat slowly. However, details on the state of play and slightly blurred footage that made playing kit distinguishable made Maxwell easily identifiable.

Shocked by the turn of events, Maxwell has now said the episode was hard for him.

“I was shocked. I was a bit hurt by it as well,” Maxwell told SEN.

“To have these allegations about your involvement in a game where you’ve only got happy memories about it, great memories … I still remember the feeling after hugging Steve Smith after getting my maiden Test hundred.

“To have that tarnished by these allegations was pretty devastating and obviously there’s absolutely no truth to it whatsoever. It was 100 per cent unfair, to tarnish one of the best moments of my career was pretty brutal. The only thing they could have done worse was tarnish that World Cup win (in 2015). They’re two of the best moments of my career.

“To say I’d done anything untoward in that game when I’d just finally got back in the Test side – I’d worked my absolute backside off – to say I’d do anything to ruin that would be absolutely ridiculous,” he added.

The hard-hitting batsman further said Cricket Australia had warned him about the documentary before it got aired.

“If (the documentary) mentioned any names, they would be taken down pretty heavily,” Maxwell said. “They didn’t mention any specific names but did basically say the time of the game, which was my involvement.

“You could see it was the gear that I was using, and there wasn’t anyone else using that gear in that game. That was certainly very hard to take.”

The documentary also claimed the pitch for the 2016 Galle Test between Sri Lanka and Australia was doctored. During that Test, Australia had lost a staggering 18 wickets to spinners, as they failed to bat more than 85 overs during the entire game.