Dean Jones slams Glenn Maxwell as a 'problem' to Australian cricket

Glenn Maxwell didn't play the Black Caps on Sundya after public comments he made about teammate Matthew Wade. Photo / Greg Bower

Glenn Maxwell had a rollercoaster week after generating a wave of controversy with his inflammatory comments about Australian wicketkeeper Matthew Wade.

Maxwell said it was "painful" to bat below his Victorian captain at state level which led Australian captain Steve Smith to fine him for causing dissent.

The explosive all-rounder was considered by many to be a shoo-in for the opening One Day International against New Zealand in Sydney last night, but Smith had other ideas.

The Aussie skipper surprised fans at the coin toss, announcing Maxwell to have been dropped alongside ODI specialist James Faulkner for the less experienced Travis Head and dumped Test all-rounder Mitchell Marsh. The decision led to a wave of eyebrows raised in Smith's direction questioning if Maxwell had been dropped for his comments. Smith stood strong and assured it wasn't the case, citing Head's trailblazing Shield hundred for his selection over Maxwell.

If only to matters more awkward in the Australian camp, Maxwell had to run drinks out to Wade in the middle of Australia's innings while performing his trusty twelfth man duties for the team.

Maxwell has always been a divisive member of the team purely through his highly unorthodox batting technique. His dynamic twist to the sport convinced Shane Warne enough to say he should be Australia's go-to man in all three formats of the game. While his explosive switch hits and swat-shots can be productive, his inconsistency and choice of words off the field has people doubting his eligibility as a long-term selection for Australia.

Aussie Test and ODI legend Dean Jones weighed in on Maxwell's saga, and he didn't hold back on the uncomfortable truths.

"It's okay to have that (arguments between players). Sometimes you have fights with your own team," Jones said on 3AW Radio Monday. "But the fact is you need to be able to express your opinion and get it off your chest before going into a public place."

When asked if he thought it would be the end of Maxwell's career, Jones hesitated.

"The game is asking him a question: does he love it enough? Is he prepared to sacrifice his whole career for it? Because at the moment ... is he the solution or is he the problem? At the moment he's the problem."

No stranger to putting in the hard yards, Jones' huge double-hundred under 50 degree heat in India - a performance which saw him hospitalised for dehydration - will go down in history as one of the most hard-fought innings' by an Australian batsman. Jones vomited on the field in pure exhaustion from his lengthy time defending Indian bowlers before being rushed to hospital. It's this kind of grit and determination the 55-year-old suggested Maxwell to improve on, slamming the Victorian all-rounder's poor defence.

"Can the guy play? You betcha. But he's just got to improve his defensive skills. Life and cricket is 70% defensive skills and 30% offensive skills. If you don't get your defensive skills right in the first place, don't worry about your offensive skills because they're gone."

To top it off, Jones joined the long list of people concerned with the over-management of professional cricket, calling out international teams' lengthy list of officials.

"I just came back from India two days ago (referring to England's subcontinent tour) and England have 19 staff members on their team. I haven't even talked about the squad - they've got 16 in the squad there - everyone's trying to have a piece of your time.

"We've taken the game to another level. Sometimes it's just got too complicated."