Australia’s Cameron Green is back doing what he loves after a long stretch battling back injuries. Once viewed as Australia's next elite all-rounder, Green has hit pause on the bowling front to focus on a pure batting role after undergoing back surgery in late 2024.
With four stress fractures behind him, the 26-year-old is now approaching his international comeback after almost nine months. He last played a match for Australia in September 2024.
Notably, Australia’s head-coach Andrew McDonald confirmed that Cameron Green will be in the playing XI for the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 final against South Africa, starting June 11 at Lord's in London.
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No. 3? No Problem: Returning Cameron Green Eager for Bigger Test Role
With Green set to play as a pure batter for the time being, he has found a silver lining in this. He is embracing the opportunity to become a specialist batter in the mould of Australia’s greats. And he is finding joy in the simplicity that comes with having just half a game to worry about.
"The silver lining to having four back injuries is I've got four chances only to be a batter. I felt like my game's always been good around those periods. I'm always going to keep bowling, but you're so much more relaxed [with] half a game to worry about. When you're bowling and batting, there's so much more you have to do bowling-wise to keep yourself fit and ready to play. It does take away from batting. So, certainly, just batting is nice," Green said as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
As Green underwent a back surgery, the mental challenges of recovery were eased by a timely message from someone who had walked the same path. Jasprit Bumrah, India’s pace spearhead, had undergone a similar back surgery himself and returned to top-level cricket with great success.
"He was in the middle of a Test match in India. Just a few things like that are really special and makes you feel a lot better about it. To get someone like him to reach out and then to watch him during the summer, to see how good he is obviously post-surgery, filled me with a lot of confidence," Green shared.
Green returned from his injury and played for Gloucestershire in the County Championship Division Two 2025. He used the stint to refine his red-ball game and scored three centuries, adding to his confidence.
"It's certainly the best I've felt batting in England. To get the chance to come over and play some county cricket is massively valuable. So it's the most prepared I've been. I think it's learning what the different conditions can bring… speaking to a few county guys who've been here for years, different ways to go about it. Certain clichés like defending straight and scoring square. It's normally the complete opposite to Australia, where you're looking to just hit straight down the ground."
There is growing speculation that he could take up the No. 3 role for Australia, possibly as early as the upcoming WTC final. Though he has batted at this position only once in his first-class career so far, he is ready to take up the challenge and would take inspiration from his junior cricket days.
"You grow up through your whole career, you speak to anyone here, they've definitely batted in the top three or four throughout their whole junior career. I was no different, batting three until you get to first-class cricket. Absolutely no issues batting at three when you've done it your whole life," Green asserted.
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Cameron Green's Test Numbers
Green has already built a solid base in Test cricket. In 28 matches, he has made 1,377 runs. He has gone past fifty six times and converted two of those into centuries. The numbers might not jump off the page, but they have come in tough situations and against top-class opposition.
With the ball, he has chipped in whenever needed, taking 35 wickets. While he is currently not bowling due to his back issues, that part of his game has not disappeared.
Right now, Green’s focus is on making every run count with the bat, especially with the possibility of stepping into Australia’s top three.
