“You’ve got an unbelievable amount of time with the bat and you’ve got an ability to bowl a heavy ball. They are two sets of skills you can’t buy on a shelf. I think you’re ready for this.”
Steve Smith was effusive in praise of Cameron Green’s skills when handing out a debut cap to the 21-year-old all-rounder in Canberra five years ago. He was right. Green was indeed ready for this. Since then, he has become an Australia regular across formats and one of the most sought-after cricketers in the world, as evidenced by his record-breaking IPL deal a few days back.
But, as promising as Green’s career trajectory has been, there’s a sense of underachievement 35 Tests into his career, given the kind of hype he burst onto the scene with. He hasn’t failed, but he hasn’t dominated either.
By the end of the second day’s play in the third Ashes Test at Adelaide, Green averages 33.34 with the bat and 36.18 with the ball. Respectable, but not frightening numbers - a sharp contrast to what he put up when coming through the ranks.
Before his Test debut, Green averaged 55.41 with the bat and 21.72 with the ball in first-class cricket. While a record like that would have been unsustainable in the long run even at first-class level, let alone Test cricket, the drop in his average difference (batting average - bowling average) from +33.69 to -2.84 has been massive, raising the question whether he’s now closer to being a very good bits-and-pieces cricketer, than a generational, genuine all-rounder.
Cameron Green vs other seam-bowling all-rounders after 35 Tests
The Adelaide Test match is Green’s 35th. A zoomed-out comparison with the records of some of the best seam-bowling all-rounders of the game at the same stage in their careers adds to perception that Green might not be at the same elite level as them yet.
Ben Stokes, one of the best in the business - also aged 26 after 35 Tests - had almost 500 more runs and 50 more wickets than Green at that stage. His averages were only marginally better than Green’s (34.19 vs 33.34 and 34.46 vs 36.18), but Stokes had put in many more memorable performances by then. His five hundreds and three five-wicket hauls overshadow Green’s two tons and one five-for by a distance.
Jacques Kallis, arguably the greatest cricketer ever, was already a beast by the time he played his 35th Test match, averaging 42.08 with the bat and 28.52 with the ball. Kapil Dev, who was only 22 when he played his 35th Test, averaged 27.85 and 27.75 with the bat and ball respectively. Even someone like Shane Watson, who’s recognised more for his white-ball exploits than red, had markedly better numbers than Green at the 35-Test mark, averaging 37.54 with 20 fifty-plus scores and 28.91 with three five-wicket hauls.
Also read: Jacques Kallis: Arguably the best all-rounder of all time – Almanack
But raw averages don’t always tell the complete story, especially in the case of all-rounders.
Why has Green underwhelmed? Or has he?
In his 54 Test innings so far, Green has batted in the top five 17 times, which should become 18 by the end of the Adelaide Test. Unless your name is Jacques Kallis, batting in the top five, let alone top three, as a seam-bowling all-rounder is rare, particularly if you’re early into your Test career. Among the names listed in the graphic above, only Kallis (49 innings) and Watson (51 innings) batted in the top five more often than Green in their first 35 Tests.
While the primary reason Green has been tried out in the top order is that Australia consider him good enough to bat there, another significant factor that has facilitated this move is his injury issues.
Even before making his Test debut, Green had suffered three stress fractures of the back, which have recurred during his international career, forcing him to undergo spine surgery in October 2024. Naturally, this has restricted his bowling workloads, which have been carefully managed since he was a teenager.
Reduced bowling output has allowed Green to bat higher up in the order, which has presented its own challenge: WTC-induced bowler-friendly conditions across the board. The three-Test series against the West Indies earlier this year, where Green batted at three, saw a combined batting average of 17.68, one of the lowest in a Test series ever. But Green held his own, making crucial contributions and ending up as the third-highest scorer of the series.
What has hurt Green’s stature the most is his batting record in Australia and England, where he has a combined average of 25.56 and has made only four fifties and no hundreds in 36 innings. There’s no real reason for why that can’t improve. He has the raw materials and the technique to score tough and big runs, as his recent exploits in the West Indies, and the heroic 174* at Wellington when no other Australian batter went past 40, suggest.
With the ball, Green has picked up an average of only 1.02 wickets per Test, which doesn’t help his reputation of being a genuine, world-class all-rounder. But that has largely been due to him not being able to bowl enough, rather than due to his bowling not being threatening enough. His 11.1 overs per Test are the lowest among the all-rounders in the graphic above, with the next-lowest being Watson at 16.6 overs per match.
Alongside raw numbers, what has shaped the perception of Green’s underachievement is the absence of defining performances on the biggest stages. The players he is often compared with had already begun to bend marquee games to their will by the 35-Test mark. Green, by contrast, has had fewer opportunities to bowl long spells or bat with complete freedom and clarity when the stakes were highest, and fewer moments that have come to define series. That doesn’t necessarily mean he lacks the temperament for big occasions, but it does explain why his impact has felt more muted than his ability suggests.
When Steve Smith handed Cameron Green his debut cap, he spoke of skills that “can’t be bought on a shelf”. Those skills are only maturing, even if the numbers haven’t yet caught up to the promise. Green hasn’t underachieved so much as he has been shaped by circumstance - injuries, conditions and role compromises. Thirty-five Tests is a meaningful sample, but it is not a verdict. The next 35, though, will be.
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