Josh Inglis will be Australia’s Test wicketkeeper after Tim Paine hangs boot, predicts Shane Warne

In the recent past, the Western Australian wicketkeeper-batsman Josh Inglis has certainly shown that he has the calibre to be part of the Australian setup for the limited-overs setup. However, the management’s continued faith in the likes of Matthew Wade and Alex Carey has prevented the right-hander from potentially making his national debut. 

Despite him not being called-up in any of the Australian squad yet, former Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne has predicted that the 26-year-old would be the national team’s Test wicket-keeper for the longest time after current skipper Tim Paine hangs up his boot. 

"He's gonna play for Australia, definitely … I think he's going to be the (Test) keeper-batsman after Tim Paine," Warne told radio station SEN from the UK today.

Warne credited Inglis’ abilities behind the stick, stating that his movement both behind the stumps and at the crease would definitely earn him an edge over the other contenders for the coveted position in Australian cricket. 

"He's very clean behind the stumps, very soft hands, and a good mover behind the stumps. With the bat he's one of those new, modern 360 (degree) players. He's got every single shot – he's got the ramp, the reverse ramps and he's got the traditional normal shots as well,” he added.

The former leg-spinner also insisted that his hunger for knowledge combined with his consistent display would definitely put him in national team contention very quickly. 

"He's very switched on and hungry for knowledge. He's very, very impressive and I reckon he's going to be representing Australia very, very quickly."

Former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist, however, had a differing opinion. Gilchrist insisted that Alex Carey, who recently skippered the national team, in the absence of Aaron Finch would be the leading contender to replace Paine in the future. 

"He (Carey) has been pegged as a potential leader right from the moment he entered cricket circles, coming out the back of that journey out of AFL Everyone's had to be patient while the cricketing side of it - the skills and the results - caught up to speed with the leadership potential (but) he's certainly fulfilling that," Gilchrist told SEN.

Gilchrist also pointed out Carey’s leadership abilities, which he believes will help the South Australian wicketkeeper to tip him over Inglis, who is on red-hot form across formats. 

"It's going to come down to more than leadership. Josh Inglis has been outstanding in all competitions – Sheffield Shield, Big Bash, and he's carving his way over in England at the moment. So he's a guy who will be in competition with Alex Carey for that number seven keeper-batsman position from when Tim Paine leaves the stage.”