So far, Green has bowled just four overs in a single Sheffield Shield game this summer. He is slated to bowl again in Western Australia’s next Shield fixture on November 11, but the selectors want extra bowling cover in case Green is still not fully ready.
That means there is a strong chance that Beau Webster will keep his place in the Test side, having done very little wrong in six matches to date. However, that decision would also force Marnus Labuschagne to open the batting, as he did in his most recent Test, the World Championship final at Lord’s in June.
Cameron Green bats for WA.Credit: Getty Images
Australia’s preferred configuration is for Green to play as the sole allrounder, making room for a specialist opener to complement Usman Khawaja at the top, then allow Labuschagne to bat three, Steve Smith at four and Travis Head five.
With skipper Pat Cummins travelling to Perth but not yet ready to play due to his recovery from a back injury, the reserve pace bowling spots will be closer to the frontline than before. Brendan Doggett is favoured to be part of the squad having missed the West Indies tour with injury.
Sean Abbott and Michael Neser, a pair of perennial backup pace bowlers for Australia in recent years, were duelling for the final spot in the squad.
He claimed match figures of 7-86 for South Australia against WA at the WACA Ground last week, and is highly regarded for his combination of high pace, height and considerable skill.
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“I’ve been waiting for this for a long time, so if I do get a call to join that squad, I’ll be ready and we will see what happens,” Doggett said in Adelaide on Tuesday. “I’ve been in and around it a few times now, but I think we’ve got the best bowling attack in world cricket, and I feel like we have had for a long time.
“So it’s just great for me to be able to share a change room with these world-class bowlers, just watching how they go about it, and how durable and professional they are. So it’s been great learning for me, being around that environment.
“Those guys have won pretty much every trophy you can win, so I guess I can look at it and feel sorry for myself or go, ‘well, what a time to be around these sort of guys.’ You know what I mean? They’re going to go down in history as the best to ever do it, so yeah it’s pretty cool to be able to rub shoulders with them.”
- Possible Australian Test squad: Steve Smith (capt), Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Beau Webster, Josh Inglis, Alex Carey, Jake Weatherald, Mitchell Starc, Scott Boland, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood, Sean Abbott, Brendan Doggett. Pat Cummins also travelling to Perth
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