Mystery benefactor clinches Cameron Green's Gloucestershire deal

Gloucestershire have signed Australia's Cameron Green for five County Championship matches, in a deal made possible by a "significant donation" from one of the club's members.

ESPNcricinfo reported this month that Green is hoping to make his return from a back stress fracture before the end of the Sheffield Shield season, and that he was lining up a stint in county cricket. Gloucestershire announced on Friday that he will play five games for them between April 18 and May 26 in the second division of the Championship.

Green's stint will enable him to play competitively ahead of June's World Test Championship final, which sees Australia face South Africa at Lord's. He will only be available as a specialist batter, rather than an allrounder, and faces competition for places in the middle order after the recent success of Josh Inglis and Beau Webster early in their Test careers.

Gloucestershire's finances have been perilous in recent years, with the club posting a £1.19 million loss in their most recent accounts. But chair Peter Matthews said one of the club's 2,000 or so members had donated a sum of money which will enable them to cover the cost of Green's wages without exceeding their playing budget for the 2025 season.

"We are delighted to welcome Cameron to Gloucestershire," Matthews said. "This deal would not have been possible without a significant donation from a member of the club, and we are incredibly grateful for his generosity, which has enabled us to do this deal without going over the playing budget."

Green has never previously played county cricket and will link up with his Western Australia team-mate Cameron Bancroft in Bristol, who was appointed captain for their Championship season earlier this week.

Mark Alleyne, Gloucestershire's coach, said: "Cameron Green's ability is unquestionable… He usually operates in a key position for the best Test team in the world at the moment and having that pedigree in our camp is amazing for the players alongside him. We have serious ambitions in all formats in 2025 and Cameron's signing will reinforce this sentiment."

Elsewhere, Hampshire have confirmed the signing of another Australian allrounder in New South Wales' Jack Edwards. ESPNcricinfo reported this week that Edwards will effectively replace Mohammad Abbas for the first two months of the Championship season, with Hampshire's hoping Edwards' ability to bat No. 7 will help them fill the void left by James Vince quitting red-ball cricket.