Indian Wicket Keepers

Indian Wicket Keeper – A wicket-keeper plays a crucial role for the team in Cricket. He is the one who needs to be on his toes all the time while fielding. Keeping wickets for a side isn’t really a piece of cake. You can’t afford to make a lot of mistakes while standing behind the wickets.

A wicket-keeper also actively performs the role of encouraging the players to stay motivated during the course of the game. India have been blessed with several wicket-keepers in their cricketing history. India, however, lacked a wicket-keeper who was also an aggressive batsman until MS Dhoni came to the fore.

In MS Dhoni, India found a gem of a cricketer and for a decade the team didn’t have to worry about looking for a solid wicket-keeping option. On that note, here’s a look at India’s top five wicket-keepers in their cricketing history:

1. MS Dhoni

As far as India’s greatest wicket-keeping batsman is concerned, MS Dhoni’s name has to be at the top. The former Indian skipper played 535 games as a wicket-keeper for India. He made 823 dismissals, which includes 631 catches and 192 stumpings.

He is not only India’s great wicket-keeper but also the greatest skipper in Indian cricket history. MS Dhoni is the only captaincy to have won all three ICC trophies, namely, ICC World Cup 2011, ICC T20 World Cup 2007 and ICC 2013 Champions Trophy.

2. Nayan Mongia

Nayan Mongia is India’s second-best wicket-keeper in their cricketing history. In 184 games, he affected 261 dismissals, including 209 catches and 52 stumpings. He scored 1272 and 1442 runs in Tests and ODI respectively in his international cricket career.

3. Syed Kirmani

Former Indian cricketer, Syed Kirmani was counted amongst India’s finest wicket-keepers. He was awarded as the best wicket-keeper in the 1983 World Cup. In 137 matches, he affected 234 dismissals, which include 187 catches and 47 stumpings.

4. Kiran More

Former Indian wicket-keeper, Kiran More represented India from 1984 to 1993 in 49 Tests and 94 ODIs. In his illustrious career, he affected 220 dismissals, including 173 catches and 47 stumpings. More has scored 1285 runs in Tests at an average of 25.7. In ODIs, he has 563 runs to his name at an average of 13.

5. Wriddhiman Saha

The Indian wicket-keeper, Wriddhiman Saha is currently the best as far as keeping wickets is concerned. He is known for his safest hands behind the wickets. Saha is, currently, an active Indian wicket-keeper. He has played 38 Tests and 9 ODIs so far for team India. He has scored 1251 runs in 38 Tests at an average of 29. So far, he has affected 121 dismissals, including 109 catches and 12 stumpings.