Australian batter Glenn Maxwell injured himself after falling off a golf cart and will now miss the game against rivals England. Maxwell, who scored the fastest ton of the ICC Cricket World Cup against the Netherlands, suffered concussion and facial bruising and will now undergo the necessary protocols to be declared fit for the latter stages of the tournament. (NZ vs RSA Blog | Full Coverage)
"In transporting back from the clubhouse to the team bus, where Glenn Maxwell come off the back of a cart, and has suffered a small concussion," confirmed Australia head coach Andrew McDonald.
"So, he will go into concussion protocols for the next period of time, and will unfortunately miss the England game."
Australia have one foot in the semi-finals of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, thanks to four wins from their six games at the time of writing. The record-world champions currently occupy the fourth and final knockout spot, two points ahead of Pakistan, who have played one game more.
Despite the weight of the occasion, McDonald confirmed that Australia won't call a replacement for the injured Maxwell, who should be fit for duty in around a week. McDonald also revealed that he has options available, now that some of his players are back in contention after spells on the sidelines.
"There'll be no replacement as such. So he'll go into like, it's six to eight days concussion protocol. So as I said, that takes into account the England game who will be unavailable for that game," McDonald added.
"And then clearly within the squad, we've got some players who become available in Marcus Stoinis and Cameron Green is available as well. So, we haven't made that decision as yet."
Australia face England on Saturday, November 4, 2023, at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
