The Ashes: Australia won’t try to match England’s ‘Bazball’ tactics, says Alex Carey

Australia’s wicketkeeper Alex Carey has stated they won’t be attracted by England’s ‘Bazball’ approach and will rather stick to the same tactics that helped them qualify for the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final.

Even though there are still six weeks to go for The Ashes, the pre-series chatter has already begun, starting with Stuart Broad, who said that he does not class the previous edition of The Ashes in Australia wasn’t the “real Ashes.” In the 2021-22 series, Australia thrashed England 4-0. Meanwhile, Ben Stokes has asked for "flat, fast" pitches to aid England's scoring rate while there was a report that the boundaries could also be pulled in.

Before The Ashes, Australia will face off against India in the 2021-23 WTC final, which is scheduled to begin on June 7 at The Oval, London.

“We've heard some stuff in the media what the wickets might be like, the boundaries etc, [and] the way [England] are playing at the moment it is eye-catching. I'd like to think we aren't surprised now [with] the way they'll come out and play,” Carey told SEN radio.

Ever since Stokes and Brendon McCullum have taken charge of the English Test side, the team has taken their game to the next level. The two together have built a new image for English cricket – a very aggressive one – that has helped him win 10 out of their last 12 Tests. However, Australia aren’t too bothered about Bazball.

"The tactical stuff will start to take place over the next couple of weeks but I don't see us falling into our batters going out and trying to score the same rate. We'll do it differently, we've had some serious success in the last 18-24 months playing the style we want to play in different conditions and lucky enough to be rewarded with a spot in the World Test Championship [final].

“So we are excited to come over to their backyard and take on a team that's playing some really eye-catching cricket. As a player it's going to be hot contest and I'm smiling just thinking about that first Test," added Carey.

Carey is one of the 10 players from the Australian Ashes squad who are currently in Australia, with the others spread across county cricket and the Indian Premier League (IPL). Steve Smith, who finished as the leading run-scorer when Australia toured England for The Ashes in 2019, has signed with Sussex for a short stint ahead of the five-match series.

"We'll all come together before that World Test Championship and have our focus solely on that game but with an eye to the first [Ashes] Test match," Carey added.

Meanwhile, the upcoming Ashes will be Carey’s first tour of England for Tests. He took over Australia’s ‘keeper role in the longest format ahead of the 2021-22 Ashes Down Under. In the limited-overs, Carey had an impressive run during the 2019 ODI World Cup in England and also scored his first ODI ton there in 2020.

Alex Carey set to finally experience Test cricket in England

The South Australia cricketer also has a small experience in First-Class cricket in England, having played a game for Sussex in 2019, where he scored 56 and 69 not out.

Carey scored his first-ever century in Tests last season and that came against South Africa at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). He is quite confident of getting accustomed to the English conditions but admitted that the wicketkeeping could be tad challenging with the 'wobble' that can often happen to the red Dukes ball when it passes the batter.

"It's hard to train [for] the wobble that we as keepers know comes down and we make it look a bit silly at times if we don't get a hand on it. For me, just staying really open-minded knowing there'll be days when it doesn't look pretty…you see some of the techniques of the English keepers and it's completely different to the Aussies.

"I think adapting as quickly as I can when I get over there, hopefully, will have some centre-wickets and catch a few balls from our bowlers, then from there hopefully just react well enough that if one does wobble that I move to that, see it and catch it. But it's a really good point and probably something as cricket fans you expect the wicketkeepers to make it look easy at times, but it wobbles down and you are like 'what are you doing' but it's all part of the fun," added Carey.

England have not won the Ashes since 2015. The upcoming edition is scheduled to go underway on June 16, with the opening Test to be played at Edgbaston.