News Analysis
The second match in Darwin was remembered for Dewald Brevis’ sparkling hundred, yet it quietly raised a knotty issue for Australia’s selectors – do they squeeze a second wicketkeeper into a 15-man World Cup squad, or trust that Josh Inglis will stay fit for seven intense weeks next February?
With Inglis battling the flu – on top of those niggling back complaints he has carried for most of the year – the call went out to Alex Carey. A last-minute flight, an unfamiliar dressing-room, and suddenly he was making his first T20I appearance since 2021. He managed 26 from 18 balls and, more memorably, produced a wonderfully odd stumping to see off Lhuan-dre Pretorius. Handy, no doubt, but the scramble exposed how thin the keeping cover actually is.
Flying a player from Adelaide to Darwin is one thing; parachuting someone into a World Cup bubble in the Caribbean or the United States is quite another. Squads are capped at 15. Swapping players mid-tournament requires ICC approval and, crucially, once someone is replaced they cannot return. Australia discovered that the hard way in 2022 when Inglis sliced his hand on a golf club, forcing Cameron Green in and leaving Matthew Wade as the only gloveman for the rest of the event.
Back then Finch half-joked that David Warner could throw the pads on in an emergency. Nobody thought it was a great idea, least of all Warner, but it highlighted the gamble. “You don’t want to mess around with specialists at a World Cup,” Finch said at the time, words that still feel relevant.
The present white-ball pecking order is clear enough: Inglis keeps, Carey waits. In ODIs they can both play as pure batters – Carey’s Champions Trophy run reinforced that – yet in T20 cricket the top six is already cramped. Tuesday night was only the seventh occasion Carey had been pushed down to No. 7, and the first time since 2018. His overall T20 strike-rate sits at a mildly respectable 129.04; Inglis hums along at 150.98. Recent Big Bash numbers narrow the gap – Carey’s 146.52 against Inglis’ 138.57 – but Inglis is still the more natural dasher.
All of which leaves national selector George Bailey and head coach Andrew McDonald with a tight equation: does Carey travel as insurance, or do they prefer an extra hitter, maybe someone who bowls a few overs? To complicate matters further, Inglis’ back spasms flare up every so often. Australia could roll the dice, hope he survives, and, if disaster struck, fly in Carey from the reserves list. That, though, risks being a keeper short for a crucial group game.
For the past two T20 World Cups Australia carried two designated wicketkeepers – Wade plus Inglis in 2024 and 2021. It felt belt-and-braces then; it feels sensible now. The catch is whether the XI can absorb both without diluting power. Carey’s best T20 work comes as an opener or at No. 4, roles currently locked down by Travis Head, Warner, Mitch Marsh and Glenn Maxwell.
There is also the question of rhythm. Carey’s state duties sit mostly in red-ball cricket; Inglis lives in the shortest format. One senior coach, speaking off the record, put it bluntly: “If Josh’s back plays up during the World Cup, we’re in strife. He’s our only keeper who genuinely strikes at 150 and can float anywhere.”
Of course, Australia are not alone here. England trusted a single specialist at the last 50-over World Cup, while India have juggled KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan for similar reasons. The sport keeps squeezing squads, forcing uncomfortable trade-offs.
The selection panel will gather again in January after the home BBL window. Carey’s BBL strike-rate will be watched closely; so will Inglis’ fitness reports from Western Australia. No formal decision is expected until then, but conversation has already started, and the keepers know it.
“I’m happy to bat wherever I’m needed,” Carey said on Tuesday night, not quite masking his desire to be more than just the emergency option. Inglis kept his counsel, perhaps mindful that every back twinge is now front-page news.
Australia have six more T20Is before the squad is due. Plenty of time, you might say. Then again, ask anyone who has played a World Cup: plenty of time tends to disappear very quickly.
