AlexCarey

After starting out as a cricketer, Carey decided to pursue a career in Australian Rules football and as an 18-year-old was the inaugural captain and Best and Fairest Award winner for the newly formed Greater Western Sydney Giants in his first season. But Carey was axed by the club as they prepared to enter the top tier AFL competition in 2012, and was soon lured back to cricket by the South Australian Redbacks. There has been no looking back ever since.

Carey had long been highly regarded by South Australia, having played under-age cricket for the state. Having returned to the state set-up he soon switched from full-time batter to wicketkeeper-batter and found form, taking the gloves full-time for the state in the 2015-16 summer. 

The left-hander played a big role in securing Adelaide Strikers' BBL|07 title win in 2017-18 – his incredible ton against the Hobart Hurricanes being a standout performance, and had narrowly missed out on Test selection for that summer's Ashes series. But his terrific run of form earned him his ODI & T20I debuts early in 2018, with the wicketkeeper soon donning the role of vice-captain in both formats, including at the 2019 ODI World Cup in England where he epitomised Aussie grit to bat on, bloodied and bandaged, after being struck on the chin during the semi-final. 

His Test call up came in the 2021-22 summer to replace Tim Paine as Australia's gloveman, receiving Baggy Green cap No.461 from Adam Gilchrist at the Gabba, with a maiden ton coming following summer at the Boxing Day Test against South Africa. A mainstay of the Test team, even as he was usurped as Australia's first-choice gloveman in the white-ball formats, he famously stumped Jonny Bairstow during the 2023 Ashes Test at Lord's when the Englishman wandered out of his crease.