Cameron Green: The New Promise of Australian Cricket Ready for Debut
The young all-rounder from Western Australia, 21-year-old Cameron Green, is set to debut for Australia at the Adelaide Oval. His first appearance is one of the most anticipated in recent times. Here’s a profile of this promising player.Professional Career
In first-class cricket, Green has shown exceptional performance. He has accumulated five centuries in 21 matches, including a career-high of 197 runs earlier this season against New South Wales. His batting average is 55.04. One of his most outstanding matches was against Queensland at the Gabba in November 2019, where he demonstrated his skill with the bat, scoring 87 and 121 runs not out, batting at positions 8 and 9. This was also the last match in which he bowled for a year. With the ball, he averages 21.72 runs for his 33 wickets, including 5 for 24 in his first-class debut against Tasmania, against whom he also obtained his career-best figures of 6 for 30 in 2018. Although his career in white-ball formats does not stand out as much, he made his ODI debut a couple of weeks ago, but has only played a few matches, nine in List A and T20. It is with the red (and pink) ball where he is generating great expectation.High Expectations
“For me, Cameron Green is the next Australian cricket superstar. He’s a genuine prospect with the bat and ball, but I think his future is as a batsman who can offer some quality overs. Cameron is a batsman with uncommon talent. At 6 feet 7 inches, he could become something very special. I would put him at number 6 to start, but I think number 4 is his long-term position. The sooner he plays at this level, the sooner he will become the player he should be.”
Greg Chappell
Greg Chappell has called him the “best since Ricky Ponting” in recent interviews. In June, a scenario was speculated where Australia would play both Test and T20I on the same day, and Chappell selected him at number 6 in the Test team immediately.Concerns about Recent Injuries
A worrying moment was when Green was hit on the head by a delivery from Jasprit Bumrah at the SCG. He had to leave the field and was substituted due to a concussion, in addition to undergoing scans that ruled out any fractures. Fortunately, the blow did not cause major damage (unlike Will Pucovski, Green has no history of concussions) and it seems that he will comply with all Cricket Australia protocols to be able to debut.The All-Terrain Vehicle Dreamed of by Australia?
Perhaps, but with caution. This has nothing to do with his talent, but rather with the restrictions on his bowling due to a stress fracture in his back that he suffered last year. He has worked on his action with WA bowling coach Matt Mason, and so far has been limited to four-over spells. This season, he hasn’t bowled more than eight overs in a day in match conditions. However, he continues to demonstrate his wicket-taking ability: he took two in the second innings against the Indians at Drummoyne Oval and produced a beauty to dismiss Shubman Gill before his injury at the SCG.
Tim Paine also suggested that the bowling restrictions would be relaxed. “I think he’ll bowl a bit more than that, once you’re selected in a Test match, you’re ready to play. That said, we don’t expect him to bowl a huge amount of overs with the attack we have.”An Early Debut?
In a way, yes. A few weeks ago, it seemed unlikely that he would be part of the XI at the start of the series, despite having been included in the expanded squad. The preferred strategy was for Australia to maintain its traditional balance of six batsmen, a wicketkeeper and four bowlers. However, plans were altered by the injuries of Warner and Pucovksi, which led Australia to reorganize the batting order (at least for one test) and created the opportunity at number 6. This does not mean that Green does not deserve it. Based on his current form, it could easily be said that he is among Australia’s top six batsmen, and Justin Langer and national selector Trevor Hohns have said that he is worthy of being selected just for his batting.
