सिल्वर लाइंस: कैमरन ग्रीन पर पीठ की सर्जरी, वापसी और बुमराह का प्रभाव

Silver Linings: Cameron Green on back surgery, comeback and the Bumrah impact

The night before Cameron Green went in for back surgery last October, he received an unexpected message from Jasprit Bumrah. The Indian pace spearhead was checking in on his former Mumbai Indians teammate while playing a Test against New Zealand in India.

Bumrah had undergone the same procedure 18 months earlier and recovered remarkably, bowling even better than before. This reassured Green that he was making the right decision.

"That is really special. And makes you feel a lot better about it. I didn't play with him in Mumbai but that was the connection through there. Spent a bit of time with him there. To get someone like him to reach out and then to watch him during the summer, to see how good he is obviously post-surgery, filled me with a lot of confidence," says the 26-year-old.

Green will likely regain his spot in the playing XI at No 3, with Marnus Labuschagne moving up to face the new ball. While Green won't bowl anytime soon, he's excited to resume his Test career.

"The silver lining to having four back injuries is I've got four chances only to be a batter. I felt like my game's always been good around those periods. So, that's never to take away, I'm always going to keep bowling. But you're so much more relaxed. Half a game to worry about, which is obviously nice. When you're bowling and batting, there's so much more you have to do bowling wise to keep yourself fit and ready to play. It does take away from batting. So, certainly, just batting is nice," he says with a smile.

Green is enjoying focusing solely on his batting during his time in the nets in London. This is evident in the freedom and confidence in his batting. His recent run with Gloucestershire in County Cricket is testament to that.

Asked about his form, Green acknowledges it's the best he's felt batting in England.

"(It's) certainly the best I've felt batting in England. Obviously, we don't get much time to come here and practice. So, to get the chance to come over and play some County cricket is like massively valuable. So, it's the most prepared I've been. We'll say that for now," he says with a chuckle.

Green is familiar with these conditions, having played in the last Ashes here in 2023 and the WTC final at The Oval against India. However, he feels the time with Gloucestershire helped him understand the nuances of batting in England better.

"It's learning what the different conditions can bring. How old the ball can be to what it actually can do. Speaking to a few County guys who've been here for years, different ways to go about it. Certain cliches like defending straight and scoring square. It's normally the complete opposite to Australia, where you're looking to just hit straight down the ground. Just spending time out there has been awesome. Facing different speeds than what we face, different skillsets that first-class cricketers have been as compared to Australia."

Green was amazed at how quickly his body recovered compared to others who'd had the same surgery. He consulted his teammate and friend, Jason Behrendorff, who had the procedure a few years earlier.

Green, excited to return to gully and pair up with Beau Webster, recalls being fully mobile at the "two-week mark" and so mobile that the coaches had to ask him to slow down.

"I think the procedure has changed definitely since Jason Behrendorff had his. I've got three scars, as they were able to miss the muscle a bit more, a little bit invasive as compared to Jason who only has one scar. Must have gone through the one hole. I don't think he could move for 7-8 weeks. He was going a bit like "Stuff you"," he says laughing.

Green's pragmatism shines through as he recounts the six-month period away from the action, where he missed the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and the two-Test tour to Sri Lanka. While he admits to having tough moments watching his teammates on TV, he also emphasizes making the most of the time off.

"I've always tried to find a silver lining to an injury. I think we play a lot of cricket and hardly get any time at home. So my silver lining was probably a bit of time at home. To refresh and reconnect with some friends that I don't get the time to meet otherwise. Reconnect with family. Spend some time in the gym and get my body right. Have a good think about my batting and my bowling. How can I improve there without actually doing it. When I got injured, there were definitely mixed emotions. You're missing Test cricket, which is what hurts you the most. Watching the guys play was tough at times. But at the same time, I knew I was going to go home to have 5-6 months off, which I desperately needed."

While Australia searched for replacements for Green, he kept a close eye on the India series and occasionally longed to be back in the dressing room.

"The times when you see the guys celebrating in the dressing-room or just having a really good day, knowing the type of feeling you'll have is what makes you want to be there. But at the same time, there were moments when I definitely went 'Jasprit looks pretty good'," he says.