Glenn Maxwell in horror moment as cricket fans slam umpiring 'shockers' at T20 World Cup

Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell's T20 World Cup campaign couldn't have gotten off to a worse start after being dismissed for a golden duck in Australia's match against Oman. Maxwell came into the World Cup in some of the worst form of his cricket career and his woes continued on Thursday despite Australia cruising to victory in their opening match at the T20 Cricket World Cup against Oman.

The all-rounder dropped himself from his Royal Challengers Bangalore side in the IPL to take a "mental and physical break" from cricket after battling a hip injury and struggling to make a mark. On his return, he didn't fare any better and ended the tournament with startlingly meagre figures of 52 runs from nine innings, at an average of 5.77.

Maxwell would have been hoping that he could turn things around for Australia but on Thursday he only lasted one ball after Oman captain Aqib Ilyas took an absolute screamer at cover. Maxwell got a hold of a delivery off Mehran Khan but Ilyas was up to the task, diving sharply to his left and holding onto a spectacular catch.

FlashCric wrote: "One of the all-time catches by the Oman skipper has Glenn Maxwell going for a duck. Is there an upset brewing here?" Aussie fans were hoping Maxwell could have helped steady the ship after Travis Head (12) and Mitchell Marsh (14) fell relatively cheaply but instead he was sent straight back to the pavilion. His dismissal saw Australia 3-50 after 8.3 overs and social media could smell a potential upset brewing.

But Aussie opener David Warner and Marcus Stoinis steadied the ship, with both men bringing up their half-centuries in dominant style. Warner was dismissed shortly after for 56, while Stoinis top-scored with 67 not out. After stuttering early Australia finished 5-164, a solid score on what appears to be a slow wicket.

T20 World Cup umpiring slammed

Mitchell Starc got the Aussies off to a great start with the ball trapping opener Pratik Athavale for a golden duck, with just the third ball of his first over. Starc nailed Athavale’s front pad with an inswinging delivery that hit him on the full right in front.

But umpire Joel Wilson was unmoved. After a brief discussion with his teammates Australian captain Mitch Marsh sent it upstairs where the DRS showed the ball had hit the pad first and was clearly hitting the stumps.

Wilson's umpiring shocker, however, was not over giving out Ilyas just two balls later LBW. Ilyas reviewed almost immediately and replays showed that not only did the ball pitch outside leg stump but it was missing the stumps entirely by more than an entire ball's width. And cricket fans couldn't believe the back-to-back howlers calling for him to be removed from umpiring further T20 World Cup games.

Broadcaster Paul Dennett took to social media to write: "That was a shocker from Joel Wilson. Never looked out. I’d go as far as to say his giving that out should invite discussion over his suitability to even be a World Cup umpire."

Code Sports’ Daniel Cherny also couldn't believe what he was seeing but joked that it was a good test to get the DRS technology warmed up. "What is not often appreciated is that giving Joel Wilson games early in an ICC tournament is a great way to ensure DRS is operating smoothly," he wrote.

Oman struggled to get much going early after losing two wickets in the opening two overs. Despite always being well below the run rate, Oman managed to finish with a respectable total of 9-125.

Stoinis was the star of the match with his 67 not out being followed up by taking 3-19 from his three overs with the ball. Australia will next face England on Saturday (3am Sunday AEDT).

with AAP