Cricket
4 hours ago
Is Australia back to “ground zero” with Cam Green?
By SEN
He has been Australia’s next ‘big thing’ for some years now, but Cameron Green is yet to find his right position in the Australian Test team.
Averaging just 23.36 runs from 11 innings’ in 2025, where he has batted at three and five, leaves a lot to be desired. Has his form gone under the radar in the wake of the opening batting debate pre-series?
Green found himself in the spotlight the day before the third Test in Adelaide after being bought for $4.17 million (AUD) by the Kolkata Knight Riders for the 2026 IPL, the biggest deal in the competition's history.
SEN Cricket’s Gerard Whateley knows Green has to prioritise that money, but questions where it leaves the 26-year-old in his Test career.
“I think (Green is) going to be ground zero for the struggle because Australia needs him to develop as a Test cricketer with so much invested in him,” Whateley said.
“If you consider this (coming) year, two (Tests) against Bangladesh in the Top End, three against South Africa, four against New Zealand, five against India next year, the 150th Test at the MCG and then five in England for the Ashes… but you can’t ask a man in his mid-20’s to forego $3 million for six weeks of work, it’s not really a question of which he prioritises. He has to do that work and earn that money and that is going to be the modern struggle I expect.”
Simon Katich agreed but defended Green for not full neglecting his red ball preparations.
“To be fair to him, he went to County cricket this year and played a number of games for Gloucester, did well, got some grounding in the game there which is really important for his development; particularly with the 2027 Ashes looming,” Katich said.
“It’s going to be a really challenging time for him.
“It’s on him now because he’s been given plenty of (red-ball) opportunities and those numbers in Australia where you expect him to excel because they’re in home conditions… he’s got to make the most of it this series because we’re seeing more and more players start to put their hand up and someone like Beau Webster deserves to be in this Test team.”
Beau Webster averages 34.63 with four fifties in just 12 innings and has constantly been in selection discussions since his breakout season in the Sheffield Shield in 2024/25.
But whether or not Green and Webster can co-exist in the same side may depend on whether Green can reach his full potential with bat in hand, according to Whateley.
“There’s a huge difference between being the all-rounder at six, and batting three, four or five. If he is going to occupy five, then you’ve got to be turning in hundreds. Averaging 30 just simply doesn’t cut it. If he’s going to average 30, go back to six,” Whateley said.
Is Green’s spot in the side seriously in danger, though?
“The dynamic shifts as soon as someone gets an opportunity like Usman Khawaja today. He’s got nothing to lose and he gets runs… all of a sudden Cameron Green is out of the team,” Katich claimed.
Green was dismissed for a duck on Day 1 of the third Test in Adelaide.
