Durban [South Africa], October 15 (ANI): Australia head coach Andrew McDonald has cast doubt over Cameron Green’s availability for the second ICC World Test Championship fixture against South Africa, with the star all-rounder still recovering from an abdominal injury ahead of Sunday’s clash in Gqeberha.
Green missed the opening Test in Durban, where Australia secured a commanding 214-run victory to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. His potential return had raised hopes of strengthening Australia’s batting line-up for the crucial second encounter at St George’s Park.
However, McDonald indicated that the 27-year-old would need to meet several fitness requirements before being considered for selection, leaving his participation uncertain as Australia prepare to build on their impressive start to the series.
"(Green's) progressing well. He's got a few things to go through in the next three, four days. He'll progress (on) that and, on the back of a soft tissue injury, it can accelerate quite quickly," McDonald said as per the ICC website.
Australia have received a positive update on reserve wicketkeeper Josh Inglis, who missed the opening Test against South Africa after sustaining a finger injury during last month’s ODI series against the Proteas.
His recovery is a welcome boost for the visitors as they prepare for the second Test in Gqeberha, with his availability potentially strengthening Australia’s selection options.
"Josh had a couple of hits during this Test match out the back of the nets during lunchtime, and that's gone well," McDonald said.
"It'll be more about the comfort with the splint and how that progresses. He'll have bat versus ball sessions in PE (Gqeberha), and we'll get more information there."
Cooper Connolly could also come into contention for Australia’s second Test against South Africa after missing the series opener in Durban due to a head cold in the lead-up to the match.
The all-rounder’s ability to provide a quality spin-bowling option could prove crucial in Australia’s selection plans, particularly with Cameron Green unavailable to bowl in South Africa even if he recovers sufficiently to feature as a specialist batter.
Meanwhile, the roles of Nic Maddinson and Beau Webster remain uncertain as Australia weigh up their options ahead of Sunday’s clash in Gqeberha. Head coach Andrew McDonald reiterated that captain Pat Cummins wants the team to maintain flexibility in its batting order, leaving several selection decisions open as the visitors look to extend their 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
"I suppose the external view on that is that you need specific orders at certain times and this person's an opener, this person's a middle-order player," he said.
"I think we're more open-minded than that. So we'll assess what we need to do going to the next Test (playing on a) different surface, potentially, not sure what it sort of holds there, but in terms of where Renners (Matthew Renshaw) will bat, we'll work through that leading into the next Test," he concluded.
Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Cameron Green, Sam Harper, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nic Maddinson, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster. (ANI)
Cameron Green "progressing well" from injury but availability uncertain for 2nd Test against South Africa
