Alex Carey reveals ‘vicious and vicious’ attacks on him and his family about Jonny Bairstow Ashes being so bad the cyber police had to step in: ‘I deleted Instagram’
- Alex Carey has revealed he deleted Instagram after his stumping
- The Australian faced abuse following his firing from Jonny Bairstow
- Carey says he has no regrets about the controversial moment
Police were forced to intervene at the Ashes’ most controversial moment after Alex Carey was deluged with abuse online.
Australian wicket-keeper Carey was at the center of a huge saga after he punched Jonny Bairstow on the final day of the second Test at Lord’s despite the Englishman believing the ball was dead.
A major debate about the ‘spirit of cricket’ ensued in the aftermath of the incident, and Carey says he was forced to close his Instagram account due to an outpouring of abuse.
“A lot of nasty comments came my way, or my way, so after the incident it was pretty aggressive,” Carey said.
‘I didn’t really look into it, I didn’t have to. There were a lot of people watching and watching it.
Alex Carey has opened up about the deluge of abuse he endured during the Ashes
The Australian was criticized for his punching of Jonny Bairstow at Lord’s in July
“I actually deleted Instagram for a week or so, put the phone down and focused on being with the family.”
Carey elaborated on the ‘misery’ that followed the punching, which will go down in history as one of the most controversial moments in Test cricket.
“When you’re in the moment, you know you’re competing against the team,” he told The Project.
‘You try to take wickets, you try to score runs, you try to get a competitive score.
(I heard) Lots of booing. And I think I was a little surprised by the mess that followed.”
Carey says he was forced to take down Instagram due to the high level of abuse
Carey added that given the chance again, he wouldn’t change what he had done at Lord’s that day.
“We received feedback quite quickly. It’s one of those things where a punch thrown on the field turns into a huge story.
‘I think everyone is entitled to their opinion and absolutely respects it. And then everyone is also entitled to their opinion about the spirit of cricket.”