Cam Green cops short straw as Lance Morris fires up in Adelaide Oval nets

Only one man in the Australian squad was more disappointed with Lance Morris missing out on a test debut than the 24-year-old himself, and that was Cam Green, who copped the quick in the nets after the call was made.

Scott Boland’s inclusion for the Adelaide test at the expense of skipper Pat Cummins may have dashed the tearaway WA quick’s hopes, but he didn’t miss a beat as he charged down on WA compatriot Cam Green.

Green drew the short straw on a grassy net wicket as his thighs, and outside edge were tested by the blistering pace man known for clocking speeds in excess of 150km/h.

The golden all-rounder looked a deer-in-headlights at times, which is no mean feat, and there did not appear to be another batsman in the vicinity of Morris’ net.

He even found himself stepping away to admire a delivery at one point.

Morris has made a breathtaking start to the Sheffield Shield season, blowing batters away with raw pace and his new-found deadly accuracy.

He leads the competition with 27 wickets at an average of 18.4 and has been a major part of WA’s unbeaten start to their title defence.

The 24-year-old received the SOS call-up just moments after nearly bowling his state to a remarkable victory at the Gabba after a quad complaint left Cummins unable to bowl in the final innings in Perth.

Camera Icon Cameron Green of Australia bats during an Australian Test squad training session at Adelaide Oval on December 06, 2022 in Adelaide, Australia. Credit: Mark Brake/Getty Images

“It was pretty exciting in the change rooms, we had just come off the field after that draw at the Gabba, and Adam Voges went over to Lance and said, ‘I hope you’ve got your phone on; you need to answer the next call,” WA bowling coach Tim MacDonald said.

“He did, and he came back into the room and had a big smile on his face. He mentioned it to a couple of guys, and the whole changing room erupted.

“We’ve seen what he can do, and the boys know how good he is and how hard he works as well, so the excitement was shown in the change rooms — a fair bit of cheering and jumping on top of him and all that sort of stuff.”

Boland’s selection comes off the back of a remarkable Ashes campaign last summer, where he claimed 18 wickets in three matches at an average of 9.55.

He was also in the squad for tours to Pakistan and Sri Lanka but was not called upon.