In the twenty-fourth game of the ongoing World Cup, Australia defeated the Netherlands with a record-breaking win thanks to a brilliant century from Glenn Maxwell, which stunned the cricketing world. He deservedly won Player of the competition for his century, which he scored in just 40 balls, making it the fourth fastest in One Day Internationals (ODIs) history and the fastest in a World Cup competition.
But even as everyone celebrated this incredible accomplishment, Glenn Maxwell voiced his displeasure with the mid-inning light displays that are now a standard in some World Cup games. During the dazzling show, Maxwell covered his eyes, as seen by onlookers at the Delhi location.
Glenn Maxwell was candid when asked whether he didn’t like the light show.
He recounted how a Big Bash game at Perth Stadium had given him terrible headaches due to a similar light show. He objected to the notion of such interruptions during a cricket match, pointing out that players must shift their vision to focus on fast-moving balls.
“Well, during a Big Bash game, Perth Stadium experienced something akin to that light show. It merely seems to give me intense headaches, and it takes a long time for my eyes to acclimate. According to Wisden, Glenn Maxwell stated, “I just think it’s the dumbest idea for cricketers when you have this thing coming at you quickly and your eyes take so long to adjust. I think we just lost a wicket and the Perth Stadium lights went nuts.”
He said, “I just try and cover up as much as I possibly can and ignore it but it’s a horrible, horrible idea. I was at the other end and it took me ages to get my eyes to go again and I felt like I had a headache.”
Australia defeated the Netherlands with a record-breaking victory.
The effect of mid-game light shows on players’ focus and performance is an area of cricket that is rarely mentioned, but Maxwell’s candid critique illuminates it. Australia had set an intimidating goal of 399-8 in their 50 overs going into the match, which proved too much for the Netherlands to overcome. Adam Zampa took four wickets to dismiss the Dutch squad for just ninety runs.
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