A one-day series scheduled half-way between World Cups and sandwiched by two intriguing home Test series is a pretty hard sell for Cricket Australia.
The trans-Tasman cricket rivalry has generally meant more to New Zealanders than to Australians. For those across the ditch, a series against Australia is viewed as a relatively big-ticket event. On these shores though, even when the Black Caps are performing well, cricket against the neighbours rarely attracts top billing for the summer.
![Dark to light blue?: Glenn Maxwell could be on the move to NSW following his comments about batting below Matthew Wade.](/web/20161206184501im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/2/y/w/e/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gt3bxc.png/1480744164881.jpg)
The Chappell-Hadlee Trophy was a meritorious concept when introduced in 2004, and has provided plenty of compelling cricket. But it is telling that annual series were all but abandoned for the best part of half a decade, only to be brought back as CA sweetened the deal for NZ's participation in the inaugural day-night Test last year.
One-day internationals in the first half of the season have fared poorly in the attendance stakes in recent years, too; with an MCG crowd of just 14,177 for an Australia-South Africa ODI in November 2014 prompting a CA investigation. That the drop-off in ODI crowds has corresponded with the runaway success of domestic Twenty20 cricket is no coincidence.
So how do you add spice to a relatively bland meal of cricket? Not for the first time, the answer is Glenn Maxwell. The all-rounder's comments about his state captain Matthew Wade were unedifying and jeopardised the harmony of the Australian dressing room. But what it also did was create considerable interest in a series in need of a compelling storyline.
When Steve Smith fronted the media on Saturday, questions from Australian journalists were overwhelmingly centred around the topic of Maxwell. Yes, it has created somewhat of a circus. No, it probably isn't helpful for the team. But what else was going to get the average Australian sport fan interested in the series?
The prospect of Australia winning back the trophy from the Black Caps? Possibly, but it is hardly the crown jewel of international cricket, doubly so given Australia are one-day world champions, and beat NZ in the final to earn that title. The prospect of Australia losing the world No. 1 ranking in this form of the game, something that will happen if NZ win the series 3-0? Perhaps, but that is a relatively distant proposition heading into the first game of the series, and one that Smith said was not at the forefront of his mind.
And the rankings can hardly be said to be a priority given Australia rested its two frontline quicks – Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc – from the recent ODI tour of South Africa, leading to a 5-0 whitewash at the hands of the Proteas, a result that imperiled Australia's two-year grip on top spot.
Player-wise, Australia's decision to pick essentially their best team for the start of this series means the excitement that comes from freshness is lacking. That's not necessarily a bad thing, it's a sign of stability, but the prospect of a Sydney debutant was quashed when squad bolter Hilton Cartwright was discharged to return to Western Australia for a Sheffield Shield match.
Pat Cummins' first ODI appearance in more than a year is a talking point, but it's the latest in a sizeable line of limited overs returns for the quick. It's more than five years since he's played a shield match, so murmurings about a return to the main game of the Test arena probably ought to be tempered.
How Mitch Marsh fares in his first international appearance since being dumped from the Test side will be worth looking at, but it has nothing on the bizarre beauty of Maxwell.
Love him or loathe him – the swashbuckling Victorian has an uncanny knack of providing memorable moments – be they good (his unbeaten 145 that catapulted Australia to a world record Twenty20 international total against Sri Lanka this year), the bad (an alarming form slump in 2014, months out from a home World Cup), or the ugly (his comments about Wade).
So on Sunday, eyes at the SCG will be fixed primarily on the 28-year-old. Maxwell has spoken of his desire to rid himself of his nickname "The Big Show," but yet again all he's done is reinforce it.
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