Stuart Broad was half right when he sledged Alex Carey by saying the controversial Jonny Bairstow stumping incident is all he’d be remembered for.
England’s now-retired agent provocateur was clearly trying to get under Carey’s skin in the immediate aftermath of the flashpoint incident in the second Test at Lord’s.
Carey will not be defined by that dismissal but whether he likes it or not, it will follow him for the rest of his career, particularly in times when his form is not up to scratch.
The 32-year-old wicketkeeper is in the middle of one such slump and now has to put up with the added sideshow of the Bairstow incident being blamed for a drop in his usual high standards.
His predecessor, former Australia captain Tim Paine, gave the theory air time, literally, earlier this week when he said on Tasmania’s SEN breakfast show that Carey had not been the same player since the avalanche of drama which engulfed him after he took advantage of Bairstow’s carelessness in a legitimate yet highly controversial dismissal.
“He’s been struggling, there’s no doubt about that,” Paine said on SEN. “It looks (like) a mindset thing. We know how dangerous Alex can be. I don’t think he’s looked the same since the Jonny Bairstow stumping.
“Whether that’s had an effect on him mentally because there was no doubt he copped an absolute barrel over there from everyone. I know it was a really difficult time for him and his family – he couldn’t go out for a coffee without copping abuse.
“I don’t know if it’s rattled him or if his confidence has dropped off since, but certainly his batting – barring one game in South Africa – he hasn’t looked the same.
Jonny Bairstow looks frustrated after being dismissed by Alex Carey. (Photo by Mike Egerton/PA Images via Getty Images)
“And I say that, doesn’t look the same, with his body language and his intent, his intent to go out and take the game on from the start.”
Paine is right in that Carey’s glovework has remained strong, but his struggles with the bat are an issue that Australia cannot afford at the World Cup, particularly after their woeful six-wicket loss to open their campaign against India.
Heading into Thursday’s second match against South Africa at Lucknow, the heat is on all the Aussies to bounce back, particularly Carey after he was dismissed for a duck after two quick wickets to trigger a middle-order collapse.
Veteran teammate Glenn Maxwell did the honourable thing by sticking up for Carey at his media conference on Tuesday, claiming “there’s been enough water under the bridge” since the Bairstow brouhaha and that the Aussie keeper was unlucky to get out because his bat got caught behind his pads.
Alex Carey. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)
But unfortunately for Carey, the second-ball dismissal continued a run of low scores since his quick thinking left Bairstow red with rage.
In his next five innings in the final three Ashes Tests, he was out for 8, 5, 20, 20 and 28.
On the recent white-ball tour of South Africa, he smacked 99 in a losing effort at Centurion but added 3, 6, 12 and 2 in the other ODI matches on tour before making just 14 and 11 in the warm-up matches in India before the World Cup.
Like most of Australia’s middle-order batting options, Carey prefers to take more than a few overs to settle before launching rather than going hard from the get-go like power hitters from other nations who come in for the closing overs.
Alex Carey. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)
His strike rate of 91.58 in 2023 is actually his second-best calendar year effort in his 72-game ODI career but his average of 20.55 is by far his worst.
For a team that looks intent on playing four frontline specialist bowlers, Australia can’t afford to carry Carey in the middle order if he can’t contribute with the bat.
Western Australia keeper Josh Inglis is at the ready to step in if Carey’s doldrums continue but he has a modest record in an albeit small sample size of eight ODIs (143 runs at 17.87 with a 93.46 strike rate and top score of 50) and has thus far looked more suited to the T20 format.
Carey has occasionally joked politely about the Bairstow incident whenever it has been raised in interviews since the Ashes furore died down and he’s insisted that it’s all in the past.
Josh Inglis. (Photo by Daniel Pockett – CA/Cricket Australia via Getty Images)
It’s only natural for the unprecedented tumult from an incident like that to linger in your subconscious.
You only have to mention names of players from yesteryear like Trevor Chappell, Greg Dyer, Scott Muller and Cameron Bancroft and cricket fans know what you’re referring to as the standout controversial moment of their career. And the player in question certainly doesn’t need the reminder.
But it’s not like he is going to come out and say “yes it’s affecting me still” or “yeah I’m glad I did it and the hypocritical Poms can shove their spirit of cricket”.
The conundrum for Carey is that no matter what he says or doesn’t say it will keep popping up in the news cycle unless he can silence the external noise with a return to form.
And if the Australian team remains in a funk during a World Cup, a scapegoat will be sacrificed at the selection table sooner rather than later.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Wickets on the slog at the end? The problem is that, once again, his economy rate is the worst in the team. He can't keep leaking runs. The problem with the batting is that if Marsh and/or Warner don't get off to a flyer, we simply consign ourselves to a loss. Batsmen#3 to #6, are all happy to burn 20 to 25 overs at 2 or 3/over, hoping that a slog from the tail will get us home. The coaching/planning/captaincy is the primary issue.
Wikipetia
Roar Rookie
yes personally i don't mind guys getting out playing shots. collectively we had to go at 102 or whatever to win. we bat down to 7 and Starc and Cummins are a handy 8/9. just nobody can really get going and keep going. it will happen, or it won't. pretty good bowling lineups around the world these days. and strong batting lineups - van der dussen Markham Klassen Miller is pretty scary, especially with and after de Kock. ( I did think it was obvious that Mxwell was identified as the threat so they waited him out, and Cummins aided that with the rotational quicks/Zampa unease at the other end - when he could have been thinking "OK... more spin...") it's like we have a rigid loyalty to the non-plan. oh well...
Tempo
Roar Rookie
Conditions totally changed under lights with the new ball. It was swinging and seaming all over the place. You could argue Marsh and Warner could have been a bit less expansive with their dismissals, but at the same time we needed to put some pressure back onto the bowlers. I think our quicks would have bowled much better under lights, as they did with the new ball in Chennai. To be fair, we actually looked dangerous with the brand new ball in South Africa's innings, just beat the bat or had edges drop just short or over the keeper. The ball kept moving for far longer under lights though.
Wikipetia
Roar Rookie
yes agree. the skipper looks depleted, noting it's a depleting role and depleting weather and humidity Warner looks impish in the field (did you notice he fielded about 12 balls in a row before he took the catch for Maxi) and Maxwell seems "on" with the ball, but everyone else seems just a bit meh. Marnus at least making a fight of it Starc wearing some compression super suit despite the million per cent humidity? age... weariness... fell asleep when we were batting as we have had terrible early morning and woke when we were 6-for, so have no opinion about the batting or their bowling But it struck me kinda funny that Pat decided to bowl because he had no idea how the deck would be behave -in some ways ceding the advantage to SA, who would have batted on it (against mostly crap bowling, as it happens). rather... after being so poor batting first in game 1, he preferred to see if a chase could energise us... not when lucky to escape with 311... Maxwell 3 off 16 before a tentative dismissal, reads to me like a guy seeing the collapse and frightened to counterattack because to get out doing so triggers collective and unbalanced outrage... mind you, reading the cricinfo commentary now, it reads like a Rabada masterclass under lights on a zippy deck -whereas our "quicks" looked pedestrian and just ammo for QdeK and the hip flick inot the stands?
matth
Roar Guru
It’s not going to happen. By the way Cummins would had the figures last night but for two dropped catches in his final over. I tend to see the batting as our bigger problem.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Then, unless he performs against Sri Lanka, the selectors need to simply make a team change. Cummins, Stoinis, Labuschagne out. Green, Abbott, Head in. If Head is not fit by then, rule him out and send for Turner or Hardie.
ColinT
Roar Rookie
From what I have seen, Bairstow’s behaviour has copped more criticism than Carey’s. At least outside England. Just look at all the “Morally Not Out” jokes going the rounds. I don’t believe that Carey or any Australian cricketer is that thin skinned to be affected by what a bunch of whinging Poms think of them.
matth
Roar Guru
No I don’t think they would change mid stream.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Could we see it happen if we lose to Sri Lanka?
13th Man
Roar Rookie
I'd do it now - and draft Hardie in
13th Man
Roar Rookie
Hard to judge off last night - copped a seed from Rabada. Made two 50s in warm up games, at a good rate at the death. Hardly setting the world alight but better than Carey.
matth
Roar Guru
To me it looks like the entire team needs a break. Aussie summer to India tour to IPL to WTC to Ashes to warm up series to World Cup. It looks to me like there’s nothing left in the tank
matth
Roar Guru
But what evidence do you have that Inglis is in form?
matth
Roar Guru
It wouldn’t surprise if he gives the format away after the World Cup, hopefully he’s getting some advice to that effect
matth
Roar Guru
Given the recent article that Green has had something like 2 weeks at home in over a year and has jumped from 1 format player to 3 format plus IPL, I’m wondering whether he is simply burnt out. If we get to the point where we can’t make the semifinals id send the kid home to WA for some training with his WA mates and home cooked meals.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
His record in ODI says he is.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
If you want a cliche, Cummins is the 'elephant in the room'. Even the nuns in "The Sound of Music" addressed their dilemma; "What are we going to about Maria?"
Perthstayer
Roar Rookie
Or maybe, God forbid, he's just not that good.
Perthstayer
Roar Rookie
He needs a break. Doesn't want it and many fans don't, but selectors with vision should give him a handful of games out. I'm absolutely confident he'd cone back firing. His average is low and the team isn't good enough to carry him.
Tempo
Roar Rookie
I'm surprised they pulled the trigger that early, but his slump has been going on for a while now. Now that they've picked Inglis they have to give him a decent run, can't be chopping and changing on the back of one match. He was a little untidy behind the stumps but not terrible - the catch he dropped you'd need a huge amount of luck to take since it deflected so far off the edge. He got a good ball from Rabada which would have done for a lot of batters, moving away just enough to beat the bat. I don't think selection is the main problem for Australia at the moment, they need to find a way to inject some energy and sharpness back in the side. The shambolic fielding effort and dropped catches is symptomatic of a team that looks burnt out after being on the road with very few breaks since August last year.