Cameron Green is being considered as a potential opening partner for Travis Head this summer, as Australia’s selectors explore ways to ensure both Green and Beau Webster remain in the Test team. The opportunity at the top of the batting order has been created in part by Usman Khawaja’s retirement following last summer’s Ashes series, and head coach Andrew McDonald has discussed the red-ball future for Green, who had a challenging summer before heading to India for the IPL.
Jake Weatherald played alongside Head for most of the 4-1 series victory over England, but he never fully secured the position. Although Green has shown moments of brilliance over the past year, he has not yet taken on the dominant role that many expected, especially after scoring two impressive centuries in India in 2023 and New Zealand the following year.
After Usman Khawaja and David Warner formed a successful opening partnership between 2022 and 2024, the top of the order has become a challenge for Australia. Steve Smith tried the role but was unsuccessful, returning to No.4. Nathan McSweeney was trialed and then dropped, while Sam Konstas shone briefly before fading. Marnus Labuschagne opened in the Test championship final last year, and Weatherald was brought in for the Ashes without securing the spot.
“Usman retired, so there is a gap that presents at the top,” McDonald told this masthead. “We played an eight-batter team if you want to call it that, with Beau Webster doing the spin duties. So there are opportunities within our team.
“Is [Green] the person? We’ve got a long time to understand what our team looks like, then hopefully we hit the ground running for those possible 21 Test matches.
“The red-ball conversation happens further down the track. We’ve got Cam starting in early July in Brisbane, we’ll start to build that out. He didn’t have the summer he would’ve liked last year.”
The other option open to selectors is to move Head, either to No.3 or back to his former spot at No.5, depending on whether they believe his Ashes performances are sustainable long-term.
Now in Islamabad for Australia’s upcoming ODI series that starts in Lahore on Saturday night, Green remains a key player in Australia’s plans across all formats. McDonald mentioned that there may also be some changes in the batting order for the tall 26-year-old in the matches against Pakistan and Bangladesh.
“There is an element of, OK, where do we want to position people?” McDonald said.
“Glenn Maxwell’s not in the team, do we need some power down in the finishing role? Is Cameron a four? … he has been up and down the order, so there’s more questions than answers at the moment, but we’ll try a few things.
“His impact with bat, ball and then in the field balances out our team. While at times he doesn’t perform at a level that the external expect, you’ve got to understand the sum of all parts and what he does in terms of balancing our team and making others better.
“Sometimes we critique the individual’s performance, and we don’t look at the overall function of the team. So he’s incredibly important with that all-round skill set in white-ball [cricket].”
Green had a disagreement with the media during a Sheffield Shield game before flying to the IPL to play for Kolkata Knight Riders. McDonald said he has been checking in regularly with the all-rounder to see how he is coping.
“It’s good to see him get a few runs, and I’ve spoken to him over there,” McDonald said. “It’s an incredibly intense environment over in the IPL, so our biggest challenge for him will be once he’s finished in the IPL, how we prepare him for that Pakistan series, and then really how he fits into that team.”
McDonald, meanwhile, is out of contract in the second half of 2027. Cricket Australia recently extended Shelley Nitschke’s contract as women’s head coach for another three years until 2029, and discussions about the leadership of the men’s team will soon follow.
“[It’s] not something that’s jumped into my head,” McDonald said about his contract situation.
“We’re excited by what we’ve got coming up, [with] some great challenges. We’re planning around that and working back through all those series, so I haven’t thought of anything beyond that or looked at the schedule. It’s more about preparation for the players and what that all looks like.”
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