Former Australia allrounder Shane Watson believes Cameron Green has all the skillset to succeed as a Test opener in red-ball Cricket. The selectors would be seeking a successor of David Warner in the longer format of the game following his retirement, with Cameron Green remaining a viable option for the team.
In an interview with SEN, Australian head coach Andrew McDonald revealed that Cameron Green remains a possible replacement for David Warner, though he suggested that the batting order could be reshuffled with Marnus Labuschagne moving up to open and the Australian all-rounder slotting into the middle order.
Sharing his views on the Australian opener to replace David Warner, Shane Watson expressed his confidence in Cameron Green to play as an opener for the team, believing that he has the skillset and run-scoring ability at the top of the order and backing him to come good for the team in opening the innings.
“There’s no question in my mind he can [open], Australia needs to get Cameron Green into the team and the opportunity that you’ve got right now is for him to open. They’ll just have to manage his bowling, for sure, like with my bowling when I was opening the batting. But he absolutely has got the skill, the run-scoring ability, and the understanding to be able to make the most of being an opening batter for sure”.
“It might take him a game or two just to be able to work out exactly what his game plan is. But he’s definitely got the game and the mentality to make the most of it,” Shane Watson said in Espncricinfo.
Cameron Green’s addition as an opener may provide the team with the dynamism of Jacques Kallis and Shane Watson. The 24-year-old can contribute to the team with his bowling, fielding, and batting, which makes him an appealing alternative to partner Usman Khawaja. However, it will be interesting to see if the Australian management trusts him to open the batting in the red-ball format of the game.
Usman Khawaja And Simon Katich Are Great Examples – Shane Watson
Shane Watson feels that batting lower down the order usually makes the batsmen confront the second new ball and cited the example of Katich and Khawaja as instances of middle-order batsmen who have adapted to the opening position.
“If you’re scoring runs even slightly lower down the order, you’re facing new balls at times whether you come in early or facing a second new ball, so you’re very well equipped to be able to deal with a brand new ball opening the batting, We have seen it a number of times. Uzzy and Simon Katich are great examples,” Shane Watson added.
Marcus Harris, Matt Renshaw, and Cameron Bancroft are three specialist openers in contention for selection in the next Tests against the West Indies in January. Bancroft has developed his game over the last two summers and was the Sheffield Shield’s highest run-scorer last season, scoring 945 runs at an average of 59.06.