Alex Carey has once again found himself in the middle of a controversy during his return to Lord's after the infamous Jonny Bairstow stumping incident. Carey's successful stumping of Bairstow during the 2023 Ashes Test at Lord's caused quite a stir, leading to bans for three Marylebone Cricket Club members and even drawing comments from then-British prime minister Rishi Sunak.

During the World Test Championship final between Australia and South Africa, just before lunch on day two, a similar incident almost unfolded. In the final over of the first session, David Bedingham, the set batter, appeared to edge the ball into his thigh pads. As the ball trickled down, Bedingham plucked it out before it could reach Carey, who was attempting to claim a catch. After a brief consultation between the umpires, it was deemed that the ball was dead when Bedingham grabbed it.

Former Australia Test opener Matthew Hayden, in commentary for Prime Video, mentioned that the ball was dead as it remained still between Bedingham's thighs in a slow-motion replay. However, co-commentators Ian Smith and Stuart Broad were not convinced of Bedingham's innocence, with Broad referencing the possibility of obstruction of the field.

Although 'handled the ball' was removed as an official means of dismissal in cricket in 2017, there are provisions under obstructing the field that could have seen Bedingham dismissed for his actions. Despite the brief controversy, the incident did not escalate, and the players quickly moved on as Bedingham continued to bat, scoring two boundaries before lunch.