‘Shades of Adam Gilchrist’: The wicketkeeper who could be England’s secret Ashes weapon

3 weeks ago 10

Perth: The youngest wicketkeeper to score a Test century for England, Jamie Smith was thrown a curly one early on his first Ashes tour when an Australian reporter lobbed a Jonny Bairstow-themed hypothetical at Tuesday’s official launch inside Optus Stadium.

Smith, England’s incumbent gloveman, was asked what he would have done if he had been Alex Carey and saw Bairstow wandering out of his crease, moments before that infamous 2023 stumping.

“I think out here in Australia, with the pace and bounce, I’d be too far back to hit the stumps,” Smith said, surrounded by a scrum of reporters and outstretched phones. “In a white-ball game, I’m useless at it. I wouldn’t even hit the stumps anyway.”

The door was left ajar for the Surrey product to call for a good old-fashioned Ashes square-up, but the truth is he is simply excited about keeping wicket in Australia, where truer bounce and greater carry make it a more forgiving environment for glovemen.

“I’m quite excited about it, actually,” he said.

Among the least-analysed players in either XI ahead of Friday’s first Test are the two wicketkeepers, Carey and Smith. However, their importance and potential impact in this series should not be underestimated.

Jamie Smith (left) and Josh Tongue (right) from England take questions during the 2025/26 Ashes launch in Perth.

Smith, 25, is flying under the radar, having been a Test cricketer for just 16 months.

The casual Australian fan may be unaware of the danger Smith presents with the bat. A taller wicketkeeper than most, at 188 centimetres, Smith averages 48.86 from 15 Tests – higher than Adam Gilchrist’s career mark of 47.6, albeit from 96 matches.

Once a promising footballer who trained with AFC Wimbledon, Smith already has two Test hundreds, against Sri Lanka and India.

His unbeaten 184 against India came after arriving at the crease at 5-84, before a breathtaking triple-century stand with Harry Brook – another player on his first Australian Ashes tour.

Smith’s career Test strike rate of 75.22 is only just shy of Gilchrist’s 81.95, offering a glimpse of the style England hope he can unleash in Perth. Optus Stadium’s long boundaries may demand discretion when the short stuff comes, but Smith’s youthful aggression suggests he may take Australia’s pace cartel on, Bazball style.

“Wow, and double wow,” former England player David ‘Bumble’ Lloyd said after watching Smith bat live for the first time last year as he smashed 95 against the West Indies. “I haven’t been on the edge of my seat like that since Kevin Pietersen. Smith is going to take games away from the opposition. Shades of Adam Gilchrist.”

The last England wicketkeeper to have a genuine impact on an Ashes series in Australia was Matt Prior, who averaged 50.4 in the 2010-11 triumph.

Alec Stewart averaged 44.66 from four Tests in the 2002-03 series, and Jonny Bairstow has two Ashes hundreds in Australia – though he kept in only one of those innings – but the likes of Geraint Jones, Chris Read and Jos Buttler have all struggled in local conditions.

Jamie Smith and Josh Tongue of England pose with Alex Carey and Cameron Green of Australia during the Ashes launch.

Of the two hundreds scored by England wicketkeepers in Ashes matches in Australia, both were in Perth at the WACA: Jack Richards (133 in 1986) and Bairstow (119 in 2017).

“The whole point of playing away from home sometimes is [getting used to] new conditions,” Smith said. “We’ve netted out there today, and they’re fantastic surfaces.”

Since debuting in the 2021-22 Ashes series, Carey has been one of Australia’s most reliable performers. His career average of 34.65 sits some way below Smith’s, but Australia value his steadiness behind and in front of the stumps. All signs point to another big summer.

“He looks like a great player and [plays] an exciting brand of cricket,” said Carey of Smith. “He does the job behind the stumps. Player to player, it’s a pretty good contest.”

Smith was born eight months after Gilchrist’s Test debut. In his lifetime, England have won just four Tests in Australia.

So, how do you win one here?

“I dunno,” Smith said. “It’s my first one here. We’ll see in the next few months.”