"Are we getting married or am I going to India?"- Chris Green on nervous time choosing between wedding and Australia debut
Off-spinner Chris Green had a tricky choice to make when he received his maiden Australia call-up for the T20I series against India. Green was set to marry his partner Bella and feared that he would have to postpone his wedding to fulfill his dream of playing for Australia.
Thankfully for him, things worked out well as he got married on November 24 and then joined the squad ahead of the 4th T20I, making his Australia debut on December 1 in Raipur.
Speaking to reporters ahead of the opening game of BBL 23/24 for the Sydney Thunder, here's what Chris Green had to say about that nervous time:
“It went along the lines of, ‘Look, we’re not going to ruin your wedding, but we’d love you to get on a flight Monday morning and come to India.’ I saw the first game was on the day of my wedding, and we had a discussion on whether it would affect anything."
Chris Green thanked his partner Bella for always understanding him and added:
"She knew playing for Australia was something I had always worked towards, but at the same time we had planned our wedding a long time in advance. Thankfully I didn’t have to pose the question, ‘Are we getting married or am I going to India?’ I got to do both. That was the best day of my life, getting married. It’s the most special day, and I’m so glad we were able to get it in.”
Chris Green on targeting T20 World Cup 2024
With the T20 World Cup co-hosted by the West Indies and USA in June next year, Chris Green understands that he could play a crucial role on pitches that assist spinners if he gets a call-up.
However, he is currently focused on leading the Thunder in BBL 2023/24 and doesn't want to think too far ahead. On this, Green stated:
"It’s important not to look too far ahead My main focus now becomes performing for the Sydney Thunder to the best of my ability and helping us go further and win this tournament, because I definitely believe we’ve got the team to do that. Conditions suit spin (in the West Indies), and it’s one of the places that I love bowling in because it’s conducive to spin, rather than here at times."
Despite playing just one T20I in which he bagged figures of 0/36, Green will know that a strong BBL season could see him get back into the Australian XI.