Australian all-rounder Cameron Green has been ruled out of the remainder of the ODI series in England after sustaining a back injury.
On Friday evening, Cricket Australia confirmed the 25-year-old reported back soreness following Tuesday’s third ODI in Chester-le-Street, which England won by 46 runs via DLS. He underwent scans in London, but the extent of the injury and a timeline for his return won’t be determined until he returns home for further assessment.
Green, who will travel to Perth this week to begin rehabilitation ahead of the home summer, has an unfortunate history with back injuries. He was prohibited from bowling during the 2019/20 summer due to a stress fracture in his lower back.
Watch Australia v England ODI’s Live & exclusive on FOX SPORTS, available on Kayo. New to Kayo? Start your free trial today >
Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting speculated that Green’s six-over burst of short-pitched bowling during the Durham ODI potentially contributed to the injury.
“That could be significant,” former Australian captain Ricky Ponting said on Sky Sports commentary.
“We know with Cameron Green, he has had stress fractures in his back in the past. Let’s hope it’s not that.
“They still have the option of playing him as a batsman if it’s not too bad.”
Australia’s next assignment after the white-ball tour of the United Kingdom is a home ODI series against Pakistan, which gets underway on November 4.
Pending the severity of the injury, which is yet to be determined, Green could be in a race against the clock to recover before Australia’s first Test against India in late November, while he could also play as a specialist batter if required.
If the West Australian were unavailable for the series opener in Perth, it would fuel speculation about the identity of Usman Khawaja’s opening partner for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Green’s absence would open the door for Steve Smith’s return to No. 4 with a specialist opener sliding into the starting XI, with Cameron Bancroft, Marcus Harris and Matthew Renshaw among the leading candidates.
Last month, Australian captain Pat Cummins spoke about the importance of Green’s bowling for the Test side this summer.
“We’ll be drawing on Cam Green and Mitch Marsh (to bowl) a bit more,” Cummins told reporters.
“Cam basically started in Shield cricket as a bowler but hasn’t had to bowl heaps in Test matches. Now he is a few years older, I think we will be leaning on him a bit more.”
Discussion about this post