South Africa v Australia ODIs: Alex Carey won’t be taking the gloves when making IPL debut for Delhi Capitals
Alex Carey jokes his ‘shoulder’s not that strong’ and that he gets bored out in the field, but the Aussie wicketkeeper is still looking forward to taking a break from behind the stumps when he makes his IPL debut next month.
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Australia’s Test wicketkeeper-in-waiting Alex Carey is bracing to give up the gloves next month.
Signed by Ricky Ponting’s Delhi Capitals for nearly $500,000, Carey is resigned to fighting for a spot as a specialist batsman with Indian superstar Rishabh Pant set to get first crack with the gloves.
Carey jokes his “shoulder’s not that strong” and that he gets bored out in the field.
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But he’s not complaining.
The ODI keeper and vice-captain believes the benefits of playing his first-ever IPL under the tutelage of mastermind Ponting will boost his career, regardless of whether he’s fielding in the outfield.
“I gave him a big hug when I saw him after the auction,” said Carey.
“I loved working with Punter (at last year’s World Cup). He was fantastic. He’s really calm, he’s really clear with his messaging and it’ll be a new experience for me at the IPL. This will be my first crack at it this year.
“That role I’ve been playing for the (Adelaide) Strikers and now for Australia – that middle to back end. I come in normally when the spinners are on in the middle, so I don’t think much will change there.
“Delhi are really strong at the top with the openers and Rishabh Pant at No.4, so if there’s an opportunity it’d be at 5 or 6, which is great for me.
“If I can keep improving my game in the subcontinent, I can’t wait to train against the spinners over there and chat to Ricky.”
Australia will take on South Africa on Wednesday in Bloemfontein, desperate to break a recent hoodoo against the Proteas in 50-over cricket.
Whitewashed by the South Africans last summer and then knocked off by them in the final game of the World Cup – a result which may have ultimately cost Australia the tournament – it was another bad day out on Saturday night when the depleted Proteas dusted them up in the opening ODI.
Australia is desperate to keep the three-match series alive, but are just as determined to stop the hold South Africa has had over them.
“I haven’t beaten them in a series. They beat us in Australia about 12 months ago and then in the World Cup they knocked us off,” said Carey.
“It’d be nice for us to respond and I think we will. It’ll be a great opportunity for our group to turn the series around now. We’re 1-0 down, I can’t wait to get to the next game and see how the boys respond.”
Carey is seen as a future leader in Australian cricket. He’s the current vice-captain and is on a shortlist to captain Australia if stars align once Tim Paine and Aaron Finch eventually move on from their posts.
The South Australian says he can take inspiration from South African counterpart Quinton de Kock, who is currently juggling full-time keeping, captaincy and opening the batting.
“He’s been a fantastic player at international level for a number of years now. I really enjoyed my taste of batting, keeping and captaincy for the Strikers in the early stage of the tournament and for a couple of Shield games,” he said.
“It’s one part I want to keep improving and get opportunities to do so, if it’s happens or not. Quinton is one guy who’s done it really well, Tim Paine is another one obviously with the Test side.
“At the moment, I’m really enjoying learning off Finch and Pat (Cummins) and Smudge (Steve Smith) and Bull (David Warner) and Justin (Langer) as well. It’s nice to captain teams and that small taste, I really enjoyed it.”
Originally published as South Africa v Australia ODIs: Alex Carey won’t be taking the gloves when making IPL debut for Delhi Capitals
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