Green's return brings into focus Australia's big selection calls

More than six months after Cameron Green last took the field, in an ODI at Chester-le-Street where he sent down a bouncer barrage as Harry Brook stamped an early mark as England captain, he will return to the field on Friday for Gloucestershire when they face Kent following the back surgery which ruled him out of the 2024-25 home season.

In a deal funded by a mystery benefactor, Green is available for five County Championship matches over the next six weeks - where he will be captained by Western Australia team-mate Cameron Bancroft - leading into Australia's World Test Championship final clash with South Africa at Lord's which is followed by three Tests in the West Indies.

Barring any setbacks on his return, Green is expected to be involved in both those squads but beyond that there are some tricky decisions for Australia's selectors to make about how he slots back into the XI give his bowling will remain on ice until shortly before the Ashes at the end of the year.

While the selectors may not be overly concerned about the volume of runs scored by Green in the next few weeks - the philanthropic Gloucestershire member would no doubt like a return on his investment - after a lengthy period out of the game, he will need to show some sort of form given the squeeze for batting places. The selectors will name the squads partway through Green's county stay but if he looked especially rusty, it could question the merit of bringing him straight back, although his known qualities will stand him in good stead.

The last time Green played Test cricket was against New Zealand early in 2024. He batted at No. 4 and made a masterful, match-winning 174 not out in Wellington where many other batters struggled. Things have changed since then, however, with Steven Smith returning to the middle order and producing his best returns for a number of years while Beau Webster has made a promising start at No. 6 having replaced Mitchell Marsh in the allrounder's role.

If Green was bowling, it would probably have meant a pat on the back for Webster for a job well done but his bustling medium pace could be important in ensuring Australia's frontline quicks have support. Webster will also be playing county cricket from early May for Warwickshire.

Therefore, if Green does come straight back into the side at Lord's, he may have to find a spot at the top of the order - either opening or, more likely, at No. 3 - which throws open the question about whether that is an ideal spot for him. Green was in contention to fill David Warner's opening position before the brief experiment with Smith but has only batted higher than No. 4 once in his first-class career.

It could come down to whether Marnus Labuschagne has done enough to keep his place after a challenging season, which extended a two-year run where he has averaged 28.62 in Tests. He is due to join Glamorgan in May, meaning he, too, will have some cricket before the WTC final.

George Bailey, the chair of selectors, has left the door ajar for a more one-off style selection for the final and it's not beyond the realms that Labuschagne is asked to open rather than there being a recall for Sam Konstas, creating a spot for Green at No. 3 and the rest of the order runs from there. The other, less likely, route is that the four frontline bowlers (three quicks plus Nathan Lyon) are considered enough for the title shootout and Green still replaces Webster.

Even if the selectors do take an isolated view of the final at Lord's, other decisions are only kicked down the road a couple of weeks to Barbados when the West Indies series starts. With Konstas having been left out in Sri Lanka when Travis Head opened in a horses-for-courses approach, there will likely be much thought given to enabling him to resume his Test career where there will be far less need than to do anything but bat normally.

Before too long, perhaps the end of next season's Ashes, Australia will be on the search for another new opener if Usman Khawaja decides his time is done. In an ideal world, Konstas has started to bed himself in by then. Australia's revolving door of openers post-Warner has not hampered their success but, excluding the tactical move with Head, it has not been ideal.

Green and Konstas are also not the only names to factor into the immediate batting order debate. Josh Inglis is quickly becoming hard to ignore after making a century on Test debut in Galle, albeit having been selected for his specific skills against spin.

Inglis is currently at the IPL for the Ricky Ponting-coached Punjab Kings where he has just played his first game having been warming the bench. Konstas was keen for a county deal but nothing, as yet, has been forthcoming. In terms of red-ball cricket, therefore, Green has a head start but there remain some big calls to make before June.