{"id":344016,"date":"2025-12-12T21:55:10","date_gmt":"2025-12-12T21:55:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/344016\/"},"modified":"2025-12-12T21:55:10","modified_gmt":"2025-12-12T21:55:10","slug":"alex-careys-wicketkeeping-masterclass-at-the-gabba-impresses-greats-ian-healy-adam-gilchrist-and-brad-haddin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/344016\/","title":{"rendered":"Alex Carey\u2019s wicketkeeping masterclass at the Gabba impresses greats Ian Healy, Adam Gilchrist and Brad Haddin"},"content":{"rendered":"

In early 1988, Queensland\u2019s Test keeper in waiting Peter Anderson broke a finger standing up to England great Ian Botham in a Shield game. Healy made his first-class debut in the next match and months later was wearing the baggy green in Pakistan. Anderson moved states to continue his career.<\/p>\n

Wicketkeepers, it is said, are doing their job best when they go unnoticed. Not so Carey. Channel Seven posted a highlight reel on social media of Carey at his craft in the second Ashes Test. It has been viewed 386,000 times.<\/p>\n

Carey\u2019s performance at the Gabba left his captain Steve Smith in awe, drew rich praise from gloved greats Healy and Gilchrist, and captivated a nation of cricket lovers.<\/p>\n

Not least, it proved wrong the surly prediction of England pace great Stuart Broad, who, in the moments after Carey\u2019s controversial stumping of Jonny Bairstow, said that would be all the South Australian would be remembered for.<\/p>\n

\"Although<\/p>\n

Although Australia didn\u2019t pick a spinner Carey did a lot of his work up to the stumps at the Gabba.Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n

The courage required to do what Carey did<\/p>\n

If the Bairstow incident highlighted Carey\u2019s craftiness, then the Gabba was all about his craft \u2013 and courage.<\/p>\n

It is common for a wicketkeeper to be up to the stumps to medium-pacers but less so for quicks hitting speeds in the mid to high 130km\/h range, as Michael Neser and Scott Boland did. At that speed, they have just a few hundredths of a second to react to any deviation off the pitch or the bat.<\/p>\n

Healy occasionally kept up to Steve Waugh\u2019s brisk seamers in the 1990s when wicketkeepers were not mandated to wear helmets as they are now. He said there is a \u201chigh level of anxiety\u201d over what could go wrong.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve got to get through that, I don\u2019t know how long that takes,\u201d Healy said. \u201cI don\u2019t think I did it long enough to get through that. I would do it for little bits and pieces, maybe an over here and there.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe [Carey] probably got through the anxiety and forgot about the number of fingers he could break, or I could get injured here, or there could be something down the leg side, and you start to think too much rather than watch the ball and not worry what might happen.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s that anxiety of the ball coming so fast and the batsman still gets in your way. Forget about the batsman, forget about the speed of the ball and just be ready for it. Getting through that is the key.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gilchrist kept up to Glenn McGrath in the 2007 Ashes when the pace great had lost a yard of his speed but was still unerringly accurate. He said the most difficult aspect was when batters moved around.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to sound flippant about it, but at that pace you get a good line of sight on it generally,\u201d Gilchrist said.<\/p>\n

As for Carey\u2019s display at the Gabba, Gilchrist cheekily described is as \u201cwicketkeeping porn\u201d in an Instagram post.<\/p>\n

\"Carey<\/p>\n

Carey takes a catch to dismiss Gus Atkinson at the Gabba despite pressure from Marnus Labuschagne.Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u201cYou practise to be able to accept on the odd occasion that responsibility and have the right technique. The Harry Brook one when he starts playing a ramp short in front of you, that took a lot of courage,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bouncer where he had to jump really high, that took a lot of courage to do that. To be sharp and switched on, there\u2019s nothing easy about it. That\u2019s what you do your training for \u2013 hoping one day you get your chance.\u201d<\/p>\n

The technique<\/p>\n

It\u2019s doubtful any of the 137,152 who walked through the turnstiles at the Gabba were as impressed with Carey as Healy. He and Haddin both compared Carey\u2019s performance to Don Tallon, an Invincible regarded by many who watched him as Australia\u2019s finest technician with the gloves.<\/p>\n

There is more to having a cricket ball melt in the gloves than just see ball, take ball. It starts with the crouch and the movement into what Healy describes as a \u201cpower position\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t move in a crouch,\u201d Healy said. \u201cYou just come up a touch. If you come up too high you can\u2019t move strongly sideways. If you don\u2019t come up high enough, you can\u2019t move either, you\u2019re like a duck waddle.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s found the power position. He\u2019s moving to take balls close-ish to first slip without even noticing how wide they are. He\u2019s gliding beautifully because he\u2019s got all this power in his glutes and quads because he\u2019s in the perfect power position to move left or right.<\/p>\n

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\u201cYou won\u2019t see him diving much any more, unless it\u2019s extremely wide. It looks effortless, but it\u2019s not \u2013 there\u2019s lot of work that goes into it. He practises hours and hours on end to get it that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

The catch Carey took to remove Ben Stokes, Healy said, spoke volumes of his skill and bravery.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was really pleased he got a dismissal as well as doing such a great job,\u201d Healy said. \u201cIt\u2019s really difficult to sort of hear an edge and not have time to change anything other than to tighten up your hands a bit. He didn\u2019t. He stayed soft, and it went in because he has such good technique.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo flinching either. No straightening up too quickly or hurriedly, tensing everything when he hits it and jumping in the air, that type of thing. He stayed on the ground, which is against all your natural instincts.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis training has got him to the point where he can suppress all natural instincts and concentrate on the ball and get it. It\u2019s very good.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Steve<\/p>\n

Steve Smith was in awe of Alex Carey\u2019s performance at the Gabba.Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n

Standing at first slip, Smith had the best seat in the house to the keeper\u2019s exhibition. He marvelled at Carey\u2019s skill, which in itself is revealing given his prowess in the field.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe finds a way to get the ball in his hands,\u201d Smith said. \u201c[It] hits the batter\u2019s pads and it ends up in his hands somehow.<\/p>\n

\"Adam<\/p>\n

Adam Gilchrist\u2019s Instagram post lauding Carey\u2019s work at the Gabba.Credit: Instagram<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I was at slip when he was up to the stumps, I was so wide just \u2019cause of how much he covers. He gets his hands out there, it\u2019s like he knows he\u2019s going to nick it at times and gets his hands out there. That keeping performance was as good as I\u2019ve seen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Practise makes perfect, the saying goes, but Carey does not train specifically to stand up to the stumps.<\/p>\n

\u201cI train the basics and the fundamentals and then hope for the best,\u201d Carey said this week. \u201cI won\u2019t go up to the stumps to a bowler bowling 130[km\/h] in the nets \u2013 nah.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust do my drill work and go about your business … once you\u2019re in that game intensity, instincts take over a fair bit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Why did he do it?<\/p>\n

There needs to be a compelling reason to move up to the stumps into a position where regulation edges become difficult to take and the risk of injury escalates.<\/p>\n

Boland and Neser are renowned for their metronomic line and length. By leaving the crease, batters can scramble their radar and turn the bowlers\u2019 strength into a weakness. If the wicketkeeper stands up to the stumps, the batter can only advance at the risk of being stumped.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey can take away that consideration of the batter walking down the crease and hitting them off the line, absolutely,\u201d Gilchrist, a commentator for Kayo Sport\u2019s Ashes coverage, said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat plays a huge part in supporting your bowler to get their plans out and execute their plans as best they can.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt\u2019s been a huge tactical play and clearly one he was well prepared for and identified. It\u2019s made them [England] alter what comes fairly naturally.\u201d<\/p>\n

Healy is emphatic in his belief Carey is the best wicketkeeper in the world. Since the start of last year, no gloveman is close to Carey\u2019s 84 dismissals. Next best, on 60, is Jamie Smith, who put in a shocker in Brisbane.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s clearly the best,\u201d Healy said. \u201cI can\u2019t think of anyone who is even in the same league as Alex Carey.\u201d<\/p>\n

What about Carey the batter?<\/p>\n

It will surprise many to learn that Carey is scoring at a higher strike rate than India\u2019s dynamic wicketkeeper\/batter Rishabh Pant since the start of last year.<\/p>\n

In a period where Australia\u2019s frontline batters have struggled, Carey has often bailed his team out of trouble with his counter-attacking knocks in the middle order, headlined by his 98 not out against New Zealand in Christchurch last year which won the game for Australia and saved his place in the team.<\/p>\n

\"Alex<\/p>\n

Alex Carey made a match-winning 98 against New Zealand in Christchurch.Credit: Photosport via AP<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s just so busy, he\u2019s a classy looking player,\u201d Gilchrist, the greatest wicketkeeper\/batter the game has seen, said.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIf you give him a cover drive he can play it as well as Mike Hussey. Some of his strokes make a statement to the opposition.\u201d<\/p>\n

As well as Carey is playing, Healy believes the best is still to come.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the next four years will be as good as we\u2019ve seen,\u201d Healy said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s spent the last four to five years getting there, which is very normal. He\u2019s got some real good times ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In early 1988, Queensland\u2019s Test keeper in waiting Peter Anderson broke a finger standing up to England great…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":344017,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[564],"tags":[64,63,740,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-344016","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cricket","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-cricket","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344016","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=344016"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344016\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/344017"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=344016"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=344016"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=344016"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}