'He's going to have huge demand wherever he plays': Cummins on Cameron Green's possible IPL future

Australian players are an integral part of the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL). From late spin great Shane Warne leading an unheralded Rajasthan Royals to the inaugural IPL title to the likes of David Warner who have set nearly unbeatable records in the tournament, different generations of Australians have gone on to become beloved by the fans of the franchises they play for.

Judging by what was seen in the recent three-match T20I series between India and Australia, all-rounder Cameron Green could join that pantheon in the coming years. The 23-year-old was roped in as a make-shift opener in the absence of Warner and ended up performing so well that he has ended up giving a headache to the selectors. Green has mostly played Tests for Australia but clearly showed that he is also an extremely dangerous T20 batter, smashing 120 runs in the four innings he has played thus far at an eye-watering strike rate of 193.54.

He scored 61 off 30 balls in the first T20I, putting Australia on the path to chasing down a mammoth total of 209. In the third T20I, he then smashed a half century within the first five overs, eventually ending up with a score of 52 off 21 balls.

Australia Test captain Pat Cummins, who saw the carnage that Green unleashed during the series against India first hand as part of the squad, said that handling the young fast bowling all-rounder's workload should become a priority in the next few years.

"It's one of my first thoughts whenever I bowl him that we don't want to burn him. Think it's been a huge win from the medical side of things to have him play as much cricket as he has over the last couple of years, fortunately he can fall back on his batting even if he's not bowling," Cummins told reporters

"Now he's in and around three formats it becomes even more important. He is someone who loves playing, even when he goes back to WA we have to manage that as well. There's 15 Tests in the next few months plus a World Cup, lots of cricket."

Cummins said that no one can stop Green from playing in the IPL but there will have to be a balancing act done to ensure that the player doesn't face burn-out. "You can't really blame anyone for going in [the IPL]," Cummins said. "He's going to have a huge demand on him wherever he plays. Decisions will be made, there's a lot of cricket around," he said.