Cameron Green will miss this summer’s India clash after choosing to have back surgery rather than managing the stress fracture troubles that have limited his bowling output in both international and franchise cricket.
All-rounder Green was briefed on the surgical option, to be performed in New Zealand, by Cricket Australia medical staff on Thursday afternoon and took time at the weekend with those close to him before choosing to go under the knife.
Cameron Green.Credit: Getty
“Whilst spine stress fractures are not unusual in pace bowlers, Cam has a unique defect in an adjacent area to the fracture that is believed to be contributing to the injury,” a CA spokesperson said. “After thorough consultation it was determined Cameron would benefit from the surgery to stabilise the defect and reduce the risk of future recurrence.
“The surgery has been performed successfully with elite pace bowlers in the past. Recovery time is anticipated to be around six-months. The decision to proceed to surgery is with Cameron’s long-term future as an all-rounder in mind.”
Recovery times vary for a procedure previously performed on the likes of James Pattinson, Shane Bond, Lockie Ferguson and Jason Behrendorff, but there is no chance of Green appearing in a Test match on home soil before next summer’s Ashes series.
So far in his international career, Green has been a batting all-rounder with his bowling loads carefully managed due to historical back issues – he suffered multiple stress fractures in his early days in junior and state ranks when he was primarily a bowler.
Scans had cleared Green of any back trouble in mid-year, but he complained of discomfort after an ODI against England in Durham where he bowled six overs of largely short-pitched deliveries as Australia chased a series-sealing win.
Further scans in London showed signs of a stress fracture, and Green took the next plane home to Perth as CA medical staff weighed up his options.
Had he chosen not to have surgery, Green would have been available for at least some of the India series. This was a scenario discussed by the Australian selectors last week, before Green began to lean towards a procedure which, while not risk-free, offers him a chance to bowl far more overs in future.
Australia’s selectors are due to name squads for the ODI series against Pakistan and Australia A games against India A later on Monday.
More to come
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