“Unfortunately,runs just haven’t come the way they should have when you are in really good form,” Maxwell said. “I don’t think I’ve had a better six months in cricket leading into this tournament. So it’s frustrating when it ends up like this.
“I take a lot of pride in my performance,and I put in a lot of hard work behind the scenes to get my body right for every game. And it has been a pretty tough struggle,given my body is on the wrong side of 30. I think that physical and mental toll probably just wore me down a little bit.”
The runs were flowing for Maxwell’s compatriot Travis Head,however,who blasted a century off just 39 balls to lift Sunrisers Hyderabad to victory over Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Maxwell and Head both have one eye on the Twenty20 World Cup in the Caribbean and United States in June,where they will be key components of Australia's quest to regain the title they won in the UAE in 2021.
And it was at the ODI World Cup in October and November where Maxwell put together arguably the most memorable performances of his life –not least an unbeaten double century against Afghanistan despite debilitating full-body cramps.
“After the first few games hadn’t gone to plan personally for me,it was a pretty easy decision,” Maxwell told reporters after the game,in which RCB also left out Cameron Green,leaving a huge portion of their salary cap on the bench.
“I went to Faf and the coaches last game and said it was time to probably try someone else. I have been in this situation before in the past,where you can keep playing and dig yourself into a hole. Now is actually the best time to give myself a mental and physical break.”