Maxwell atones with a masterclass

The last time Glenn Maxwell come to Adelaide, he had to leave the town red-faced, having to be escorted to the hospital in an ambulance after reportedly passing out drunk at an event alongside teammates. 

The incident, which took place on January 22, had greatly embarrassed the all-rounder and also turned the 35-year-old's affinity for alcohol into national news.

Yesterday, Maxwell returned to Adelaide for the first time since the incident and gave a timely reminder of his destructive capabilities, smashing the quickest Twenty20 internationals century in Australian soil to equal Rohit Sharma for most centuries in T20Is.

Maxwell belted 120 runs off 55 balls against the West Indies to power Australia to 241-4 and to a series-clinching 34-run victory in the second T20I.

The right-hander reached the three-figure mark off 50 balls and only 22 of his runs came from running between the wickets as he smashed 12 fours and eight sixes in his exhilarating knock.

This was Maxwell's fifth T20I ton in 94 innings, the same as Rohit who has played 49 more innings.

Interestingly, Maxwell didn't look in the best form at the start of his innings. But after hammering Akeal Hosein for a six over mid-wicket in the eighth over, he found his groove.

It was a typical Maxwell innings after that, as he brought out his switch hits, made full use of his incredible hand speed and made batting look incredibly easy.

The last time Maxwell had unleashed against a team like this was when Australia took on Afghanistan in a group-phase match of last year's ICC ODI World Cup where he hit a stupendous double hundred while virtually batting on one leg for more than half of his innings to ensure an incredible win for the Aussies.

Maxwell, as he often does, played down his incredible effort after the innings, telling Fox Cricket. "It was good fun. Just gave myself a chance. It's a really nice wicket.

Nice to cash in and spend most of the time out there. I've always relied on my hand speed to get me out of trouble ... and it really seemed to work for me today [Sunday].

In a way, this innings was Maxwell's apology to the Australian fans, his way of making amends for last month's fiasco.

"I've had a few cursed Adelaide trips … so it's nice to make this a positive one," he added.

MOST MEN'S T20I HUNDREDS

Glenn Maxwell (Australia) 5

Rohit Sharma (India) 5

Suryakumar Yadav (India) 4

Babar Azam (Pakistan) 3

Colin Munro (New Zealand) 3

Sabawoon Davizi (Czech Republic) 3