Cameron Green, the 21-year-old young all-rounder from Western Australia, is set to debut for Australia at the Adelaide Oval. His first appearance is one of the most anticipated in recent times. Here are some details about him.
Highlighted Career
In first-class cricket, Green has shown exceptional performance. He has achieved 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 match against Queensland at the Gabba in November 2019, highlighted his potential with the bat, scoring 87 and 121 runs not out, batting in positions 8 and 9. That was also the last match in which he bowled for a year.
With the ball, he averages 21.72 with 33 wickets, including 5 for 24 in his first-class debut against Tasmania, against whom he also achieved his best figures of 6 for 30 in 2018. Although his career in the white-ball format doesn’t stand out as much, he debuted in ODIs a couple of weeks ago, but has only played in nine matches in List A and T20 formats. It is with the red (and pink) ball where he is generating great expectation.
Great Expectations
Greg Chappell has called him the “best since Ricky Ponting” in recent interviews. In June, Chappell selected him at number 6 in the Test team.
For me, Cameron Green is the next Australian cricket superstar. He is a true promise with the bat and ball, but I think his future is as a batsman who can offer good overs. Cameron is a batsman with exceptional talent. At 6 feet 7 inches, he could become something very special. I would put him to bat 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.
The Recent Injury
A worrying moment was when he received a blow to the head from a Jasprit Bumrah delivery. He was withdrawn from the match due to concussion, but tests ruled out fractures. Fortunately, the blow did not cause major damage and it seems he will be able to debut, complying with Cricket Australia protocols.
The Dream Off-Roader?
Maybe, but with caution. This has nothing to do with his talent, but with the release restrictions 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 match day. However, he has shown an ability to take wickets.
Tim Paine suggested that the bowling restrictions will be relaxed. “I think he’ll bowl a bit more, 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 a starter 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 were altered by the injuries of Warner and Pucovksi, which led Australia to reorganize the batting order (at least for one Test) and that has created the opening at number 6. This is not to say that Green doesn’t 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 selection just for his batting.
