Sportsperson of the week: The curious case of Glenn Maxwell

His test career was almost over, with no centuries in two years; the Ranchi ton changed all that

When Glen Maxwell walks down the pitch in Ranchi, the crowd generally gives him a huge cheer, not because he's a great test cricketer but he is known for his exploits in the IPL knocks across India.

Maxwell played 100 balls for the first time in his international career, when he scored his maiden Test century in Ranchi. He also achieved a rare feat at the venue when he became only the second Australian cricketer to score a century in all three formats of international cricket. The 28-year-old is only the 13th player in the world to have slammed tons in all three international formats.

It was a rare Maxwell innings that wasn't peppered with sweeps, reverse sweeps and a plethora of unorthodox shots, but his Ranchi century was an exhibition of hitting through the "V", although that wasn't necessarily the plan when he took to the crease.

Maxwell, who has always been considered one of the most talented players in the Australian system, has promised at times to become a game-breaker but potential has outweighed performance throughout his 114-game international career.

Four years and two weeks after he was first handed a Test cap — when present captain Steve Smith use to carry drinks to the ground — Maxwell arrived as a Test cricketer in the culmination of a journey that has been punctuated with angst, tears and occasional outbursts of acrimony. It was a particularly sweet moment for the Victorian who has long been viewed as a player befitting the shorter formats of the game -- one who lacked what it takes to succeed at the Test level. With no century against his name during the past two years, his career was almost as good as dead.

“I was in a place where I doubted whether I would be able to play test cricket again and I didn’t want this to be my last test for sure," said an emotional Glenn Maxwell after he scored a game-changing innings of 104 during a lengthy 191-run fifth-wicket stand with Steve Smith.

Maxwell now has set himself the ambitious goal of following in Steve Smith's footsteps and making the transformation from a spin bowler to a bona fide Test batting dynamo.

The mercurial all-rounder has now not only resurrected his international career by posting his maiden test century on Friday, but has also left selectors with a major dilemma heading into next summer's Ashes.

Having started the season at the crossroads, Maxwell has now emerged as a potential magic pill to cure Australia's long headache at no 6. If he is to make the no 6 position his own, he needs to add more than one string to his bow and it will be a challenge to cement the role as a spinning allrounder when playing in Australian conditions, where pace is king. Still, if Maxwell has a successful tour here and proves his immense talent is truly suited to the test arena, like those of Smith and Warner before him, he could be a formidable weapon in Australia's arsenal and an established fixture in the side.