Cameron Green

Green didn't play any first-class cricket in 2017-18 and spent the 2018 winter at Cricket Australia's National Performance Centre in Brisbane. His game went to another level in 2019-20 after another stress fracture in his lower back forced him to stop bowling again. He made his maiden first-class century, producing scores of 87 not out and 121 not out to force an extraordinary draw against Queensland at the Gabba. He would score two more centuries that summer before posting a career-best 197 from 438 balls against New South Wales in October 2020.

That performance led to his first international call-up as he was named in Australia's ODI and T20I squads to face a touring India side which was followed by a Test debut against the same opposition. He made half-centuries in each of his first four series then claimed a maiden five-wicket haul against South Africa the MCG in late 2022 - during a game where he badly broke his finger. Shortly after returning to side in India he made a maiden Test hundred in Ahmedabad.

By then, his cross-format skills had caught the eye after a pair of dazzling T20I fifties in India led to a bidding war in the 2022 IPL auction where Green fetched INR17.50 crore (US$2.1million approx) from Mumbai Indians and he went on to flay a memorable 47-ball century in the 2023 tournament. In 2025 he became the most expensive overseas player in IPL history when bought by Kolkata Knight Riders for AU$4.17 million.

However, the demand of being a three-format player brought challenges and Test cricket was a struggle during the 2023 Ashes with Green eventually losing his spot to the resurgent Mitchell Marsh. But such was the desire of the selectors to get him back into the side that when David Warner retired the move to promote Steven Smith to open was largely to accommodate Green at No. 4. Three matches into the role, he struck a magnificent 174 not out in Wellington.

Later in the year, during a white-ball tour of England, he succumbed to another back injury and underwent surgery which ruled him out of the entire 2024-25 season. On his return, he slotted into the challenging No. 3 role for four Tests - and made hard-fought runs in West Indies - but after a poor Ashes, questions started to be asked about whether he was hitting the heights expected.