Follow UsAustralia’s star all-rounder Glenn Maxwell, who was once a fan of former India opener Virender Sehwag, recently admitted the fact that he was no longer in touch with the former Punjab Kings mentor as their relationship ended on a very sour note.
In his book The Showman, which will hit the stands on October 29, Maxwell, while talking about a time when he was named the captain of the then Kings XI Punjab team in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2017, delves into the details of his relationship with Sehwag.
Sehwag, who was the mentor of the side, was trying to run the show, despite Maxwell being the leader of the team.
Narrating an incident where he as a captain had made a WhatsApp group of all coaches and asked everyone to pitch in their playing 11s, Sehwag was the only one who did not.
“At the end of the process, he made it clear that he would pick the starting XI, end of story. We were losing on and off the field by now, with Sehwag on more than one occasion making decisions that didn't necessarily make sense,” Maxwell wrote.
Having won three of their last four games before the last game of the season, Punjab could have made the playoffs but failed to do so.
While Maxwell himself wanted to face the press, Sehwag said that he would do it and removed Maxwell from the main WhatsApp group. It was only later when he was in the team bus that Maxwell realised that Sehwag had blamed him for every mistake of the Punjab side.
“By the time we reached the hotel, my phone was blowing up, with Sehwag having unloaded on me as a "big disappointment", blaming me for not taking responsibility as captain and all the rest. It was unpleasant, especially when I thought we had parted on good terms.
"I texted him to say how much it hurt to read those comments and added that he had lost a fan in me for the way he had conducted himself. Sehwag's response was simple: "Don't need a fan like you."
"We never spoke again. I knew my time was at an end and told the owners as much: if Sehwag was going to stick around, they were making a mistake and not to bother with me. He only lasted one more season," wrote the 36-year-old, who is currently with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the IPL.
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