Green finds net gains in return to Test trade

Had there been any fears that Cameron Green might be blinded by the vast riches of the Indian Premier League, the sight of Australian cricket's most prized young asset practising his forward defence for hours on a bowling machine operated by his dad would surely have allayed them.

Green confirmed on cricket.com.au's Unplayable Podcast he has nominated for the player auction for next year's IPL, with the allrounder tipped to attract huge interest from franchises and a million-dollar price tag despite his lack of T20 experience.  

"I have registered for it. It will be an exciting opportunity," Green said on the podcast. "Speaking to a lot of guys, especially in the WA (Western Australia) setup about their experiences in the IPL, they speak so highly of it.

"They speak about the quality coaches that you're around, the quality players that you're around. They're all the best in the world at their craft.

"It's a craft that I haven't been exposed to too much. I'm so open to wanting to learn as much as I can and that's probably one of the best environments to learn in."

That the 23-year-old has spent recent weeks retraining his mind and enormous frame to leave balls outside off-stump and to play the ball late in defence, instead of fine-tuning his power-hitting, suggests his priorities have not been diverted.

And despite Green suggesting part of the lure of a maiden IPL stint is exposure to the game's most renowned global figures, his preparation for the NRMA Insurance Test series against West Indies beginning this week has been facilitated by a more familiar voice. 

That of his father Gary, who has been feeding a bowling machine for hours on end in the lead-in to Green's first Test in his hometown Perth.

"I had a few sessions on the bowling machine basically trying to change my contact point," Green said. "In T20 cricket, you're meeting the ball so far in front of you, so you get that full swing.

"To try to rein it back and hit the ball under your eyes (is difficult). I had a few good sessions basically just playing the defence shot and just getting your balance right and being able to leave the ball – that felt weird.

"It's a challenge for all guys that do chop and change (formats). I'm just getting exposed to it now."

Indeed, Green is coming off the longest spell of limited-overs cricket of his short career, which included a World Cup debut in the final game of Australia's doomed campaign earlier this month.

Ordinarily, Green's father, one of the most important influences on a career that had progressed to first-class level even before he had reached legal drinking age, would stick to throwdowns in the pair's sessions together.

"He'd normally never use the bowling machine," Green said. "I just thought it was going to be a long session … I just wanted something consistent and (to) look after Dad's shoulder."

As Green sat out the final two Dettol ODIs against England earlier this month and returned to Perth, his focus turned to reacquainting himself with the method that has made him one of Test cricket's most vaunted prospects.

"It feels like you're playing a different game, playing white-ball cricket to red-ball cricket," said the right-hander who has still only played 21 limited-overs matches for Australia.

"It feels like you need a few hours to just really get back to the basics.

"I use my dad to throw 60-kilometre (per hour) half volleys for a few hours. It's getting back to the basics, getting your timing right – not facing Mitchell Starc bowling 140 (kph) at your back hip."

Things fell into place for Green at Australia's net session at the WACA Ground on Sunday afternoon in sharp sunshine, suggesting he once again felt comfortable against the red ball, this time against some slightly quicker throwdowns from the Australian coaching staff, delivered from reinforced plastic 'wangers'. 

The bowling attacks of West Indies and South Africa will provide sterner tests.

A challenge too for Green this summer will be how his body copes with the step-up in bowling workload from a reasonably low base, having played no first-class cricket this summer given his white-ball commitments.

The paceman will again be carefully monitored by skipper Pat Cummins and team fitness staff, but he hopes to be capable of shouldering a greater workload as the summer goes on.

"My body's in a really good place," said Green, whose introduction to international cricket has been smooth from an injury perspective given his struggles with his back during his early years with WA.

"You always wish you had a couple of red-ball games under your belt just to kind of get into that rhythm.

"But thankfully I'm the fifth bowler on the team so I can work my way in. Hopefully I can work my way into the series.

"Not managed … just not having too high expectations on yourself. With your rhythm, you might bowl 15 overs over a day, (but) I'm probably not used to it. So you work into the series that way."

Men's NRMA Insurance Test Series v West Indies

Nov 30 – Dec 4: First Test, Perth Stadium, 1:20pm AEDT

Dec 8-12: Second Test, Adelaide Oval, 3pm AEDT (day-night)

Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, David Warner

West Indies squad: Kraigg Brathwaite (c), Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, Shamarh Brooks, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Roston Chase, Joshua Da Silva, Jason Holder, Alzarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Anderson Phillip, Raymon Reifer, Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales, Devon Thomas

Buy #AUSvWI Test tickets here