Cameron Green, the 21-year-old all-rounder from Western Australia, is set to debut for Australia at the Adelaide Oval. This is one of the most anticipated appearances of recent times. Here are some details about him.
Highlighted Career
In first-class cricket, Green has shown exceptional performance. He has five centuries in 21 matches, including a maximum of 197 runs earlier this season against New South Wales. His batting average is 55.04. A notable match was against Queensland at the Gabba in November 2019, where he demonstrated his worth with the bat, scoring 87 and 121 runs not out, batting in 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 achieved his best mark of 6 for 30 in 2018. Although his career in one-day matches does not stand out as much, he had an ODI debut a couple of weeks ago, but this is in a handful of matches, nine in List A and T20. It is with the red (and pink) ball where he is generating great expectation.
Great Expectations
Expectations for Green are high. Greg Chappell has called him “the best since Ricky Ponting” in recent interviews. In June, when there was no cricket, there was speculation about the possibility of Australia playing both Test and T20I matches on the same day, and Chappell selected him at number 6 in the Test team.
“For me, Cameron Green is the next Australian cricket superstar,” Chappell said. “He’s a real prospect with the bat and ball, but I think his future lies as a batsman who can offer some quality overs. Cameron is a batsman with exceptional talent. At 6 feet 7 inches, he could become something very special. I would bat 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
The Recent Injury
A worrying moment was when Green was hit on the head by a drive from Jasprit Bumrah at the SCG. He immediately left the field and was substituted for concussion. Fortunately, the blow did not cause major damage and it seems he will be able to comply with Cricket Australia’s protocols to debut.
The Dream Off-Roader?
Green could be the all-rounder that Australia needs, although with some caution. He has had restrictions on his launch 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 has not bowled more than eight overs in a day in match conditions. However, he has shown his ability to take wickets: he took two in the second innings against the Indians at Drummoyne Oval and produced a great play to dismiss Shubman Gill before his injury at the SCG.
Tim Paine also suggested that the bowling restrictions will be relaxed. “I think he’ll bowl a few more than that, once you’re selected in a Test match, you’re ready to play. That being 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 get into the starting eleven at the beginning of the series, despite having been named in the expanded squad. The preferred route was for Australia to maintain its traditional balance of six batsmen, a wicketkeeper and four bowlers. However, recently, plans have been altered due to the injuries of Warner and Pucovksi, which has led Australia to reorganize the batting order (at least for one test) and that has created an opportunity at number 6. This does not mean that Green does not deserve it. For 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 selection just for his batting.
