Webster relishes playing with Cameron Green ahead of Bangladesh Test in Darwin

Beau Webster & Cameron Green (Photo by Ayush Kumar/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)

Beau Webster has said he does not view Cameron Green as a direct rival for a place in Australia’s Test XI, insisting the pair’s combined presence only gives captain Pat Cummins more options with the ball.

Both allrounders are set to feature in Australia’s playing XI for the first Test against Bangladesh in Darwin, which begins on Thursday, August 13, and Webster indicated the arrangement could continue for the medium term pending form and fitness.

“I suppose the biggest thing I’ve learned is that I’m good enough at this level. And I’d probably say that that was the biggest tick over the last 12 months, where I’m confident in my game that I’ve done at domestic level holds up at international level, and hopefully it can continue and I can keep contributing with bat and ball,” Webster told reporters, as reported by Cricinfo.

Why does Webster see the two-allrounder combination as a benefit rather than a competition?

Webster argued that having two allrounders in the top seven increases the bowling options available to the captain. He pointed to the flexibility it provides when the frontline fast bowlers or the spinner need a break, and said batting remains the primary contribution both players offer.

“Absolutely, I don’t see why not. I always said in the last sort of 12 to 24 months, when these conversations come up, it’s surely more of a benefit to have more options in that top seven with the ball, and I certainly don’t see it as a direct competition. I feel like it only adds more options and more benefits for the captain if we’re obviously both performing with the bat, which is probably both our main skill and what we can offer in the field. I love playing with Cameron. I love having the options as well. If he’s on with the ball or if I’m on with the ball, we can probably chop and change if the big three [fast bowlers] and the spinner need a chop-out or whatever it may be,” Webster said.

Green brings considerably more Test experience to the partnership, having played 37 matches across six years in international cricket. He has scored two Test centuries and taken a five-wicket haul, and his Sheffield Shield career batting record is significantly stronger than Webster’s, even though Webster’s recent run for Tasmania has been outstanding.

Green walked laps with coach Andrew McDonald and Cummins on Tuesday, though word from within the camp was that the conversation was routine. A selection surprise before Thursday appears very unlikely. Green batted last in the session, and his position in the order remains unclear, having appeared at No. 3, 5, 6, 7 and 8 across his last nine Test innings.

“You never really know. In the lead up to being selected in that first Test, the question was, do you feel ready? And although I was probably bluffing myself, saying ‘absolutely’, at the end of the day, you probably don’t really know until you get out there and face the bowlers from other countries and get put in situations with big crowds and I suppose big moments in games of cricket where you’re expected to perform,” Webster added.

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