Darren Berry believes Test aspirant Glenn Maxwell has made a tactical error by batting at number three for Victoria, rather than in the Bushrangers middle order.
The 29-year-old is locked in a battle with Western Australia’s Hilton Cartwright for the number six spot in the Australian side for the First Ashes Test in Brisbane, on November 23.
Since making the move up the order he has scores of 7, 20, 60, 64 and 4, and the former Victorian wicketkeeper questioned why Maxwell would bat in that spot, considering where he would bat for Australia.
“I think Maxy’s a good player, and I would like Maxy to be in at six. Why is batting three for Victoria in these three Shield games?” Berry said on SEN Afternoons.
“This might have actually gone against him. Maxy’s gone in yesterday, the ball’s swinging around, threw his hands at it and nicked it.
“Why wouldn’t he just bat at number five for Victoria, because he’s going to bat at number six for Australia?
“I understand you can go up (the order) and get a big hundred, but Hilton Cartwright is batting at number three for Western Australia, so maybe he thought ‘I need to go up to compete with him’.”
Berry feels Maxwell struggles early in his innings against the swinging ball, and is simply not a top order batsman.
“Glenn Maxwell is a damaging middle order player, he’s not great against the moving ball,” he said.
“He’s got slow feet early and he throws his hands at it.
“If he comes at five or six at the Gabba and England are on their knees, Maxwell will really hurt you, but he’s not a number three.”
Maxwell is likely to have one more chance to impress in the second innings of the Shield clash aaginst Tasmania before the team is named on Friday.