MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - FEBRUARY 13: Alex Carey speaks to the media during a press conference at Quay West Hotel on February 13, 2018 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images)

Alex Carey is set to be appointed as Australia's wicketkeeper ahead of the first Ashes Test this summer.

The 30-year old has reportedly been given the early nod ahead of Josh Inglis to replace Tim Paine, with Brisbane's dreary forecast ending Australia's internal warm-up match and the Western Australian's final chances of impressing selectors.

Speaking to RSN this morning, Carey was quick to note that no official announcement had been made, but he was prepared for and contented by the high likelihood of donning a baggy green cap next week.  

"I'm in a really good place. I think consistency over the last couple of years I've been pretty solid.. I still felt like I knew what I was doing," he said.

"There's a fair bit of love coming in, lots of questions asked, it's nice to feel that and hopefully I can send out a message or something soon to say 'yeah I'm going to make my debut'.

"A young kids dream come true."

Carey has long been touted as a potential replacement for Paine, having already been a seasoned international cricketer in the ODI format. He is also a very reliable figure behind the stumps with a temperament largely recognised as fit for both Test cricket and the Ashes arena.

A week away from the first Test, those on the fringes of selection - including the hotly contested wicketkeeping spot - were expected to have one final shot at staking their claim for the playing eleven ahead of the Ashes. The renewed battle for the wicketkeeper spot, left vacant by Tim Paine's leave of absence, was whittled down to Carey and Inglis.

The Australian squad was due to commence a three-day internal match on Wednesday between Australia (the "probables") and Australia A (the "possibles") in Brisbane. But Brisbane's weather forecast indicates that "rain tending to showers", as well as "possible storms" will bring up to 30mm of rain over the course of the day, ending the chance of a substantial match.

A Cricket Australia spokesperson confirmed this week that players were likely to "have the next few days off," noting that the squad have already had four three-hour centre wicket sessions in the past week despite the weather. That has seemingly forced selectors to turn to recent form and known quantities about Carey and Inglis.

Further indications of Carey's appointment were evident after he took part in the "broadcast media content day", while Josh Inglis has already travelled back to Western Australia.

Carey is a mainstay of the ODI side and has held an official leadership position too, which will arguably soften the blow of blooding a debutant in an Ashes series. Most notably, he was pertinent to Australia's 2019 World Cup campaign, where he took 18 catches and two stumpings, and was elevated up the order to bat at No.5

Carey's ascension to first-class cricket through his excellence in the One Day format has been likened to Adam Gilchrist. The explosive left-handed batter has a sound ODI batting record, averaging 36.45 from 45 matches - with five fifties and a ton.

In the Sheffield Shield, he's scored five first-class centuries at an average of 35.66 - an average widely accepted as sufficient for a No.7 Test batter.

Carey's most recent hit-out for South Australia yielded a spectacular century in the One Day Cup against Queensland last Sunday. That century may have come at just the right time as the batting dominates pre-Test commentary.

Additionally, Carey remains confident that his sound form behind the stumps in the shorter formats can be translated into Test cricket.

"White ball cricket's different again because you don't often get a lot of balls coming to you," he said speaking to cricket.com.au. 

"So when you get to red-ball cricket you get a different rhythm, and as obvious as it sounds it's just about catching the ball.

"My one job is to take dismissals that come my way, and I felt like I've done that pretty well. I feel like I'm moving quite well, and happy with the way I'm watching the ball.

"We can complicate it as much as we want to, this sport and wicket-keeping, but my job is to take those dismissals and I'll be judged on that."

Carey's Sheffield Shield record shows 37 matches for the return of 149 dismissals (145 catches and four stumpings). He has also kept in five first-class matches this summer for 18 catches and two stumpings.

His previous adversary in Inglis is uncapped at the international level, although he was part of Australia's victorious World Cup-winning squad - meaning he has next to no recent red-ball form to lean on.

At just 26 years of age, he is destined to be a part of the Australian setup going forward. But it was perhaps a risky move to select him ahead of the Ashes, especially after Australia's internal squad match was effectively cancelled.

Inglis raised eyebrows during the 2020/21 Sheffield Shield season, where he averaged 73.12 batting in the lower-order, notching up a total of 585 runs for the season.

He already has the backing of several former Australian greats, including Shane Warne, who penned a column in the Herald Sun claiming: "Inglis has my vote," and Ricky Ponting, who believes he is a sound long-term prospect.

“If I had my Australian selector’s hat on I’d like to see this boy up the top of the order and batting there game after game. I feel he’s someone that can potentially play for Australia in a few different formats and it just feels to me that he’s being starved of a season," Ponting said speaking to Fox Cricket.

Handing over the wicketkeeping job is a momentous occasion, given it is somewhat an infrequent event. Carey has the chance to make the spot his own under the new leadership of Pat Cummins and Steve Smith.