Craig O’Donoghue: Aussie wicketkeeper Alex Carey’s brilliant Ashes series will be what he is remembered for

“That’s all you’ll ever be remembered for.” They were the words England star Stuart Broad famously told Alex Carey the Australian wicketkeeper’s controversial dismissal of Jonny Bairstow at Lords in 2023. Well, after several superb performances throughout this Ashes series, you can guarantee that this is what Carey will actually be remembered for. What you do during an Ashes series writes your name into cricket history. That’s why the Bairstow dismissal will never be forgotten. But while that will be replayed for decades as a massive piece of cricket history, it will no longer be the day that defines Carey’s career. It could have been. That pressure of living with the fallout could have been suffocating. But when you rock up to the next series, produce a masterclass in wicketkeeping, then smash a century, that is what cricket fans will ultimately talk about when reflecting on Carey’s career. They’ll talk about how he stood up to the stumps at both the Gabba and Adelaide Oval when Michael Neser and Scott Boland were bowling. Cricket fans know how difficult that it is to do because ‘keepers are risking dropping catches by doing so. But Carey showed off his skill, dismissing Ben Stokes in Brisbane and Will Jacks in Adelaide with great catches. At the completion of the third day of the third Test, Carey has 17 dismissals. It’s an impressive figure, but stats rarely tell the true story for wicketkeepers because regulation catches and exceptional glovework look the same on a stats sheet. But Carey has shown off all of his skills. Along with his work when standing up to the pacemen, he sprinted back with the flight of the ball to take an incredible diving catch at the Gabba, despite almost colliding with Marnus Labuschagne. That’s another highlight we will continue to watch on replay. He’s taken catches diving low to his right in front of first slip. He’s had the tricky job of catching balls from bottom edges too. Catches win matches and when big moments have arrived, Carey has risen to the occasion. Aussie cricket fans are an educated bunch when it comes to ‘keeping. We’ve been lucky to watch Ian Healy and Adam Gilchrist working with Shane Warne. They provided so many memorable moments and have continued to keep the public informed about the challenges of the job while working as commentators. Gilchrist described carey’s efforts in Queensland as “keeping perfection.” Healy copped a ball to the face when spinner Greg Matthews was bowling in 1991. That’s a reminder of how dangerous it is to stand up to the stumps at any time. Players wear helmets these days. But it would still be intimidating. Then there’s Carey’s batting. He scored a wonderful century on Wednesday. after coming to the crease at 4-94. England were seriously in the game at that point. But he batted for nearly four hours and steered Australia past 300. England were on a high when he stepped onto Adelaide Oval on Friday too. This time the Aussies were 4-149 after losing Usman Khawaja and Cameron Green in quick succession. But Carey looked calm. He cut a ball to the boundary from his fourth ball and never looked back. Carey helped fellow South Australian Travis Head to get his century as they put on an unbeaten 122-run partnership that has Australia leading by 356 runs with six wickets in hand and two days remaining. Right now, Head has scored the most runs this series with 351, and Carey is ranked second with 247. Carey went to stumps unbeaten on 52. There’s still 14 overs to be bowled until the new ball is due which will give Carey the chance to get himself settled and add to his tally on Saturday morning. He’ll have no time pressure and has the comfort of batting on his home deck. Just imagine if he scores centuries in both innings. It’s not that crazy a thought and you just know how much the Aussies would love to drive England into the ground. Carey is a brilliant story. He’s the guy who overcame the disappointment of missing out on his AFL dream when Greater Western Sydney de-listed him despite previously appointing him as captain of their under 18s team. Having returned to cricket, South Australia told him he wasn’t good enough to even warrant a contract after a disappointing 2013/14 season. His Test debut came during controversy after captain Tim Paine stood down. Then he had the Bairstow drama. Plenty of players would have wilted at some point under all of that pressure. But right now, Carey is on top of the world. He’s been one of the dominant players in an Ashes series and is producing moments that fans will talk about for a long time. Carey can rest easy knowing THAT is what he’ll ultimately be remembered for.