Cameron Green Eyes More Runs After Key Fifty Against West Indies

GRENADA TEST - Cameron Green, Australia's latest No. 3 in Test cricket, expressed satisfaction with his resilient performance during the second innings of the Grenada Test against the West Indies on Saturday. Green's innings of 52 off 123 balls, his first half-century from the one-drop position, was instrumental in forging a crucial 93-run partnership with Steve Smith, who celebrated his return to the team with a fluent 71.

Cameron Green batting resolutely at No.3 in Grenada © AFP

"You always need an innings here and there just to get you going, and hopefully today was one of those," Green stated at the day's end. "If anything, it's good to get some time out there. There's a lot of good things I get out of just spending time in the middle. My balls faced has been trending up; the runs haven't been there, but there's certainly little positives I can take out of it."

Following back surgery, Green missed the 2024-25 home season but made a competitive comeback with Gloucestershire in County cricket. He notched three centuries in five County matches, including one in his first innings back. He entered the WTC final as the designated No. 3 batter, with Marnus Labuschagne promoted to open alongside Usman Khawaja. Since then, Labuschagne has lost his Test spot, and Smith was absent from the first Test against the West Indies due to a hand injury. Green's initial performances at No. 3 were underwhelming until his gritty and patient 52 in challenging conditions during the second Test helped keep Australia ahead. His previous scores were 4, 0, 3, 15, and 26.

Regarding his new batting position, Green commented, "If you ask most of the guys in our changeroom, they've all batted number three their whole junior career, and it's no different with me. I've batted number four for WA (and Australia), so being one spot up is no different."

He added, "I don't think I ever really felt comfortable out there (on that pitch) - certainly (Friday) night was tricky, and just with the new ball today (Saturday), I had to start again. You could probably ask a different question to Steve; he was batting on a different wicket. He's clearly a class above - that's a tough wicket, so to play as well as he did was incredible."

The extended injury layoff before the WTC final means Green is currently focusing solely on his batting, not yet fully available as an all-rounder.

"To be able to sneak into (the team) while still not bowling, I'm incredibly grateful for that, and hopefully my output can be a little better than it has been. But today was a nice sign that things are trending well," he said, also providing insight into his potential return to bowling.

"I've certainly had enough rest, so my back is not an issue; it's more getting load ups now. It'll be a steady progression, and hopefully around a couple of the Shield games (I'll be bowling), potentially one-dayers against India (in October), but those are all pretty far away, so we'll wait and see."