Australia wicketkeeper-batter Josh Inglis has insisted that he will not have any split loyalties, having been born and raised in England till the age of 14, if he gets the chance to keep wickets for Australia in the upcoming Ashes 2021-22 against England next month.
He is battling it out with Alex Carey to replace Tim Paine as Australia’s keeper for the first Test against England in the first Test of the upcoming Ashes series starting on December 8 in Brisbane.
Inglis told reporters: “As a kid growing up in England, I obviously supported England but that’s all changed now moving to Australia. Once you start building your way up in professional cricket, it’s quite hard trying to play for a team and not supporting them. That changed pretty quickly.”
He has not played any red-ball cricket since September 2021, but his three centuries for Western Australia last season, as well as his performance in training for next week’s Australia A match against the England Lions, could boost his chance to play as gloveman for the hosts in the first Ashes Test.
The right-hander further added, “My focus is really clear, I’m either going to be playing an ‘A’ game or a test match next week. My focus is really clear on my red ball prep … I’m really happy with where my game is at the moment. I’m ready to go.”
Meanwhile, Carey, who has also so far played 83 international games for Australia, looks a strong contender to make his Test debut against England in the upcoming Ashes series, but Inglis has been also backed by the likes of Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist, and Shane Warne for Test selection.
However, the 26-year-old insisted that the selection is completely out of their hand but said it was nice to hear praise from the legends of the game.
He signed off by saying, “You don’t want to read too much into it because, at the end of the day, they are not the guys making the decision. But for them to say some really nice things about me is nice to hear.”
(Reuters inputs)
