Aussie Star All-Rounder Set For Big Return After Being 'Mentally, Physically Ruined'

Flamboyant all-rounder Glenn Maxwell will lead his side Melbourne Stars against the Brisbane Heat on December 20, in the ninth season of the much-popular tournament

Aussie Star All-Rounder Set For Big Return After Being 'Mentally, Physically Ruined'/ Photo: AFP

Melbourne: Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell  is set to make his return to cricket in the Big Bash League. The star all-rounder had decided to take a "short" break from cricket due to difficulties experienced by him over his mental health. The flamboyant all-rounder will lead his side Melbourne Stars against the Brisbane Heat on December 20, in the ninth season of the much-popular tournament. "I was pretty cooked when I decided to take the time off," Maxwell was quoted as saying by Sydney Morning Herald. "Big reason why I did take that time away is I was pretty mentally and physically ruined. Eight months on the road, living out of a suitcase that probably had been going on for four or five years. "It all caught up with me at that time ...You go through a lot of waves of emotions over the first few weeks (of the break) and especially that first week, that was probably the hardest." Stars head coach David Hussey said it was great to have Maxwell back in the Stars camp. "We're pleased to see Glenn in green and ready to lead our side with a big season ahead. He's an incredible talent and a key part of our club but health and wellbeing comes first and it's important that he's been able to take some time away to focus on that," Hussey said. "We're pretty excited with how our list looks and what we're going to bring to the table. We were obviously very close last season and want to go that one step further. We've got a great bunch of guys and I can't wait to see what this group can produce this summer." India skipper Virat Kohli had also supported Maxwell, saying what Maxwell had done by accepting the concern is "remarkable'. England all-rounder Moeen Ali had stated that there's too much of cricket being played at the moment because of which players are becoming mentally tired. "There's so much cricket played at the moment. Mentally, you become tired. You feel drained up doing the same warm-up and other things while playing the game," Moeen told IANS.