Glen Maxwell has once again been named Man of the Match purely for his bowling performance, without even batting. In T20 cricket, only Chris Gayle has more Man of the Match awards than him.
“I am absolutely loving it… Man of the Match without batting,” Maxwell had said last July after a Major League Cricket game where he took three wickets and won the award despite not getting a chance to bat. He repeated that feat recently, again earning Man of the Match honors by taking three wickets without stepping up to bat.
In a match against the Seattle Orcas in Major League Cricket, Washington Freedom captain Maxwell showcased his bowling skills. Using his off-spin with the new ball and supported by Saurabh Netravalkar’s left-arm pace, Seattle was dismissed for just 82 runs. With Washington winning by eight wickets, Maxwell didn’t need to bat.
Netravalkar took 3 wickets for 13 runs in 3 overs, while Maxwell was the standout bowler, taking 3 wickets for 12 runs in 4 overs to claim the Man of the Match.
On July 14 last year, Maxwell had also won Man of the Match against Los Angeles Knight Riders with 3 wickets for 15 runs.
Maxwell has taken three wickets in an innings four more times on his way to Man of the Match awards, and twice before he had taken two wickets and eight times one wicket. In all those matches, his batting contributed to him winning the award — but only twice has he won Man of the Match without batting.
With this recent award, Maxwell has now been Man of the Match 45 times in this format, equaling English batsman Alex Hales. Only Chris Gayle has more Man of the Match awards in 20-over cricket.
Gayle, nicknamed the ‘Universe Boss’, has been Man of the Match 60 times in 463 matches. Hales has 45 awards in 501 matches, while Maxwell has 45 in 475 matches. Kieron Pollard has 44 awards in 703 matches, and Andre Russell has 44 in 560 matches.
In the match that ended early Saturday morning Bangladesh time in Lauderhill, Florida, Maxwell chose to bowl after winning the toss. Netravalkar struck first, dismissing Shayan Jahangir with the very first ball.
In the next over, Maxwell sent back Steven Taylor. The wickets kept falling in a steady stream. Netravalkar claimed Sikandar Raja in the third over, while Maxwell had Aaron Jones LBW in the fourth.
Though Netravalkar didn’t take a wicket in the fifth over, Maxwell made up for it by removing dangerous Kyle Myers at the end of the powerplay.
Maxwell’s powerplay figures read an impressive 3 overs, 0 maidens, 10 runs, 3 wickets. He returned for the tenth over, conceding just 2 runs.
Netravalkar came back late in the innings to take another wicket as Seattle was bowled out for 82.
Seattle’s former captain Heinrich Klaasen top-scored with 48 off 39 balls, including four sixes, playing against the flow of the game. The rest of the batsmen combined scored just 34 runs including extras, with no other player reaching double figures.
In the chase, Rachin Ravindra scored 32 off 23 balls and Mukhtar Ahmed remained unbeaten on 36 off 21 as Washington won comfortably in 9.2 overs. This victory lifted Washington to second place on the points table, having already qualified for the playoffs.