Green’s back injury leaves three giant holes in Test team for Indian summer

Giant all-rounder Cameron Green may be ruled out from bowling for up to three months, leaving Australian selectors and medical staff with a decision to make about what role he can play in the summer’s marquee Test series against India.

The selectors and medicos will speak this week about the many ramifications of Green’s back injury, which will cause domino effects up and down what had appeared to be a highly settled Australian Test line-up.

Cameron Green.Credit: AP

Green flew home early from the ODI series in the UK after an apparent recurrence of back stress trouble. Although it’s not yet clear how serious the injury is, stress reactions can require 12 weeks of recovery time, and usually mean a gradual return. The five-Test battle for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy begins on November 22 in Perth.

Australia’s coach Andrew McDonald had previously indicated that the same XI that faced New Zealand in February would be picked for the start of the India series. But Green is so pivotal that his absence would require the selectors to replace three roles: top four batter, quality change bowler and impassable gully fielder.

One example of the knock-on effects created by Green’s injury - which might also preclude him from playing as a batter only, depending on medical advice - is Mitchell Marsh’s finish to the white ball series.

After suffering a hamstring tear during the IPL, Marsh did not bowl a ball during his leadership of Australia’s Twenty20 World Cup campaign, and with Green and Aaron Hardie available he did not roll the arm over for the bulk of the England tour.

Once Green flew home, Marsh moved towards the front rank of options and took a wicket while bowling four overs amid England’s free-swinging innings.

The kicker came ahead of game five, however. Marsh handed debutant Cooper Connolly his ODI cap and did the media rounds, but was too sore to bowl or even play as a result of his Lord’s exertions: hardly an indicator he will be ready to handle Green’s workload at home this summer.

“I pulled up a bit sore after the last game, to the point where it was the right call to sit out today,” Marsh said.

“We did have a lot of moving parts these last couple of weeks, but we had guys step up for us and I’m sure everyone is looking forward to getting home, a bit of a reset, an opportunity to go play for our states, and then it’s a huge summer.”

Mitchell Marsh speaks with Cameron Green.Credit: AP

Another West Australian allrounder looms as a contingency option. Hardie did very little wrong and a lot right during the England series, popping up with handy runs and key wickets throughout.

Hardie, 25, has shown himself to be durable as well as talented, averaging better than 40 with the bat in the Sheffield Shield and 28 with the ball. While his bowling lacks Green’s velocity, it is hard to see him not being at least included as a squad member this summer.

Then there is the batting order, which seemed to be leaning towards an Usman Khawaja/Travis Head opening combination with Steve Smith returning to a spot in the middle order alongside Green.

Here, too, there will now be renewed complications. Green had, by dint of his match and series winning century against New Zealand in Wellington, made himself look the most indispensable, long-term member of a top six that has two members over 35 and three more over 30.

Were he to be missing, the whole balance would need to be reassessed. With Smith back at four, would Head be better off maintaining his livewire role at five with a specialist opener at the top? Calls for the return of Cameron Bancroft would grow louder if so.

At the same time, Marsh’s role will require some introspection in terms of his best fit in the side if he is bowling very little. He has been outspoken in expressing reluctance to move to the top of the order, even though it is Greg Chappell’s judgment that Marsh would have the skills to do so.

Big picture questions about the wider purpose of context-free bilateral tours among cricket’s wealthy nations will be sharpened. Because he was injured in England in September, Green is highly unlikely to be at his best for Australian cricket’s biggest days in December and January.

Test captain Pat Cummins missed the England ODI series expressly to ensure he was at his best for the home summer’s looming championship bout with India, and batting firecracker Travis Head was carefully managed for the same reason.

For India, the sight of the World Test Champions facing so many reshuffle prospects will be a source of optimism.

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