Australia coach Andrew McDonald says Green must pass further fitness tests, while Josh Inglis and Cooper Connolly remain in contention for the second Test in Gqeberha.

Australia all-rounder Cameron Green is no certainty to return from injury for the second ICC World Test Championship fixture against South Africa, which begins in Gqeberha on Sunday, coach Andrew McDonald has confirmed.

Green has been managing an abdominal injury that ruled him out of the opening Test in Durban, where Australia secured a commanding 214-run victory to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

The visitors had hoped the 27-year-old would recover in time for the second Test at St George’s Park, but McDonald said the all-rounder still needed to clear several fitness hurdles before being considered for selection.

“(Green’s) progressing well,” McDonald said.

“He’s got a few things to go through in the next three, four days. He’ll progress (on) that and, on the back of a soft tissue injury, it can accelerate quite quickly.”

Green’s availability remains a key consideration for Australia as they assess their batting combination for the crucial encounter. Even if he is fit enough to play, he will not be available to bowl in South Africa and would therefore feature solely as a batter.

Josh Inglis makes progress after finger injury

Australia have received more encouraging news regarding reserve wicketkeeper Josh Inglis, who missed the first Test after injuring his finger during last month’s ODI series against South Africa.

McDonald said Inglis had completed a couple of batting sessions during the opening Test and had responded well. However, his selection will depend partly on how comfortably he can bat while wearing a protective splint.

“Josh had a couple of hits during this Test match out the back of the nets during lunchtime and that’s gone well,” McDonald said.

“It’ll be more about the comfort with the splint and how that progresses. He’ll have bat versus ball sessions in PE (Gqeberha) and we’ll get more information there.”

Those sessions are expected to provide Australia with a clearer indication of Inglis’s readiness for the second Test.

Cooper Connolly could strengthen bowling options

All-rounder Cooper Connolly is another player who could come into contention after missing the Durban Test. He was overlooked following a head cold in the lead-up to the match.

Connolly’s ability to provide quality spin bowling could influence Australia’s selection decisions, particularly if Green remains unavailable or is cleared only to bat.

The uncertainty also leaves Nic Maddinson and Beau Webster competing for places as Australia consider the most effective balance for the next encounter.

Australia keep batting order flexible

McDonald said Australia would remain flexible when deciding their batting positions, rather than assigning players rigid roles based solely on whether they are traditionally openers or middle-order batters.

The coaching staff will assess the conditions at Gqeberha before finalising their combination, including where Matthew Renshaw will bat.

“I suppose the external view on that is that you need specific orders at certain times and this person’s an opener, this person’s a middle-order player,” McDonald said.

“I think we’re more open-minded than that. So we’ll assess what we need to do going to the next Test (playing on a) different surface, potentially, not sure what it sort of holds there, but in terms of where Renners (Matthew Renshaw) will bat, we’ll work through that leading into the next Test.”

Australia will aim to build on their dominant opening performance as they seek to secure the series before the third Test in Cape Town.

Australia squad

Pat Cummins (captain), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Cameron Green, Sam Harper, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nic Maddinson, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc and Beau Webster.

Australia vs South Africa Test series schedule

• First Test: 9–13 October, Durban — Australia won by 214 runs.

• Second Test: 18–22 October, Gqeberha.

• Third Test: 27–31 October, Cape Town.