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Australia skipper Pat Cummins on November 15 confirmed that their hard-hitting in-form all-rounder Glenn Maxwell will be available for the World Cup semifinal against South Africa at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Maxwell was rested for Australia's final league clash against Bangladesh after he battled cramps and back spasms to score a record-breaking 201 in a run chase against Afghanistan at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on November 7.
"Glenn Maxwell is all clear. He is all good. He was a little bit sore yesterday (Tuesday). Yeah, we get scans a lot of the time just to make sure that if there is something, we know what we're dealing with and fortunately it came back all okay. So he's fine," Cummins said during the pre-match press conference.
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However, the big toss-up will be between Marnus Labuschagne and Marcus Stoinis. Both of them have been below par in the tournament so far. Cummins refused to reveal the combination as he said, "We will announce our XI at the toss tomorrow."
Cummins also had his say on the controversy around pitch conditions tinkered with by the home team to work in their favour.
"Obviously the ICC has an independent pitch curator who manages that. I'm sure they are all over making sure it's fair to both teams. So far in this tournament that we've played on, I haven't seen any issues," said Cummins.
The last time Australia won the ODI World Cup was in 2015. Cummins was not a part of the playing XI in the final as he warmed the benches but still considers it as a highlight of his career when Australia beat New Zealand.
"I'd still say that 2015 World Cup was my career highlight, and I wasn't playing," said the bowling all-rounder.
"But it was just the most magic moment. MCG, packed house, the whole of Australia behind us, winning a World Cup, which is rare. You only get a chance every four years, so if I'm in the playing XI (on Thursday) and we win, that might be that 2015 World Cup.”
The last time Australia and South Africa met in an ODI World Cup semifinal was in the 1999 edition. Australia beat South Africa in a nail-biting encounter.
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