After remaining tight-lipped on veteran opener David Warner’s spot for the upcoming Test series against Pakistan, Australian coach Andrew McDonald has hinted at a shock batting shake-up.
McDonald, who will sit down with his selection committee and decide on their squad this week before the first Test of the summer kicks off on December 14 in Perth, says he wouldn’t be opposed to shuffling the batting order.
He further suggested that a shakeup would open up a spot or Cameron Green to move up the order, despite his recent work batting at No.6 for Australia in red ball cricket.
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Despite remaining cryptic, McDonald suggested Green, who has batted at No.4 previously for WA in Sheffield Shield, could make a big jump up the order if selected.
“What does Cam Green’s future look like in the Test team? Is it a matter of waiting for Mitch to finish or could there be another spot that opens up over time?” McDonald said on SEN on Tuesday.
“He has batted at six for most of his Test cricket, but he has been a fantastic No.4 for WA and averages close to 50 in Shield cricket.”
McDonald suggested he would create a batting lineup based on recent form, not on who was in the side last year.
“There is always the idea that you can potentially shift the order to make room to put your best six batters, or what you see as best six batters, in a certain order, and we have seen that in Australian cricket before,” McDonald said.
“David Boon went from three to opening. Justin Langer went from three to opening. Shane Watson went from six to opening. So there has been the ability to reshuffle and for that to be successful. But we will leave that to the first Test match in Perth.”
Green will suit up for WA for the first time in two years at the Gabba, with hopes he can prove himself on the brink of the Test summer.
As for other players vying for a spot in the lineup, Victorian Marcus Harris struggled through his most recent Sheffield Shield innings, making just three against Adelaide on Tuesday.
Australia will face Pakistan in a three-Test series starting on December 14 in Perth.