All-round Green carries Aussies to series sweep in Scotland

An exceptional all-round effort by Cameron Green helped Australia storm to a series sweep over Scotland with a six-wicket win in the third T20I in Edinburgh.

Green (62no off 39 balls) and Mitch Marsh (31 off 23) saw Australia comfortably home with just shy of four overs to spare chasing Scotland's 9-149 at The Grange after another strong team performance with the ball.

The 25-year-old Green relished his second straight game up the order after starting the tour at No.7, peeling off 36 on Friday before hitting his second T20I half-century on Saturday from No.4 in the final two matches of the series.

With the ball. the towering right-armer also collected three wickets, topping off a fine series for the allrounder as the equal leading wicket-taker (6) and third highest run-scorer (98) across the three matches.

"You always enjoy some opportunity and obviously there's a few big boys that aren't around," Green said.

"Obviously this is probably 'Maxi's' (Glenn Maxwell) spot, but I'm happy to fill it and get some experience there."

With the first bilateral men's series between the two nations already secure, Australia blooded rising star Cooper Connolly for an international debut as Mitch Marsh won the toss and asked the Scots to bat first.

First drop Brandon McMullen (56 off 39) was again the lynchpin for the hosts, with his second consecutive fifty seeing him finish as the series' leading run-getter with 134.

But he again found little support, with Australia always able to find a wicket as soon as a partnership looked threatening.

His second-wicket stand with opener George Munsey (25 off 17) was Scotland's best, but after Green ended their 34-run union, skipper Richie Berrington (8), Matthew Cross (7), Michael Leask (13) and Mark Watt (18) all failed to kick on.

"It's been a tough week results wise for us but having the opportunity to play against a team like Australia, to get them across to Scotland for a series has been a fantastic experience for all of us," Berrington said.

"To have that exposure, it's something we need more of to keep improving as a team."

Green (3-35) was Australia's best with ball in hand too, helped by the outfield exploits of Jake Fraser-McGurk, who courageously stood his ground on the boundary despite almost colliding with Sean Abbott to hang onto Watt's attempt to clear the rope at midwicket.

Travis Head plucked a one-hander at short fine-leg to send McMullen on his way, with wicket-taker Marcus Stoinis (1-14) again bowling economically for his two overs.

From there Scotland stalled drastically, only adding another 11 runs in 3.2 overs and losing three wickets as Abbott (2-28), Aaron Hardie (2-18) and Green closed out the innings. Connolly also bowled well to finish with 0-25 from three overs on debut. 

Jake Fraser-McGurk again missed out at the top with his second duck of the series, Brad Currie (2-20) removing both openers for the second match in a row.

The left-arm speedster missed the series opener due to county commitments with Sussex and his ability to make early inroads was the key factor in Australia being unable to repeat their record Powerplay score from the first T20.

Tim David (25 off 14) and Aaron Hardie (11no off six) both spent valuable time in the middle with Australia now shifting their attention to England for another three-match T20 series beginning in Southampton on Wednesday (3.30am Thursday AEST).

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Australia T20 squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Tim David, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood (England games only), Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Riley Meredith, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa

September 4: Australia won by seven wickets

September 6: Australia won by 70 runs

September 7: Australia won by six wickets

September 11: First T20 v England, Rose Bowl, Southampton, 3.30am Sept 12 AEST

September 13: Second T20 v England, Sophia Gardens, Cardiff, 3.30am Sept 14 AEST

September 15: Third T20 v England, Old Trafford Manchester, 11.30pm AEST

Australia ODI squad: Mitch Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Alex Carey, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Short, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa

September 19: First ODI v England, Trent Bridge, Nottingham, 10pm AEST

September 21: Second ODI v England, Headingley, Leeds, 10pm AEST

September 24: Third ODI v England, Riverside, Chester-le-Street, 10pm AEST

September 27: Fourth ODI v England, Lord's, London, 10pm AEST

September 29: Fifth ODI v England, County Ground, Bristol, 8pm AEST