In cricket, usually, the position of a batsman, fielder, and the bowler is considered to be important but the most underrated position in the world of cricket is the position of a wicketkeeper. Not every player possesses the capability and the skill to become a wicketkeeper. Being a wicketkeeper you always have to be The fastest on the pitch be it with your hands or with your thinking power. A wicketkeeper always has to think fast and act fast. In recent history, there have been many instances where people have seen wicket-keepers Like Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Kumar Sangakkara changed the game from behind the stumps. The position of a wicket-keeper is one of the most challenging positions and only a few players have excelled in it.
A list of best wicketkeeper in the world are as follows:-
Denesh Ramdin:
Denesh Ramdin
The west indies cricketer Denesh Ramdin has always played an important role for the west indies team since his debut in the year 2005.
Batting ability
As a wicket-keeper, his catching and stumping ability has frequently changed the game for the team in their favor and as a right-handed batsman, he has always been an aggressive batsman with his hard-hitting ability.
Stats
As a wicketkeeper, he has 205 catches and 12 stump-outs. Apart from being a wicketkeeper, he has also grabbed the title of one of the greatest fielders present on the field. He is extraordinary skill behind the stumps has made him one of the greatest wicket-keepers of all time.
Moin Khan:
The former cricketer of the Pakistani National team Moin Khan had his own specialized talent in wicket keeping and batting.
The unique wicket-keeping skill of Moin Khan helped the Pakistan national team to put their hands on the cricket world cup in the year 1992.
Performance with Bat:
Apart from wicket keeping, Moin Khan always made sure that he also leaves behind a mark in the match with his bat as well.
There were a number of instances where Moin Khan had to come up in the middle order to save the match with his hard-hitting abilities. Till today Moin Khan is considered one of the best wicketkeeper batsmen to have played for the Pakistani side.
Stats:
When Moin Khan retired he had 128 catches and 20 stump-outs in his name in Test cricket and 214 catches and 73 stump-outs in ODI Cricket which is one of the best ever records established by a Pakistani wicketkeeper.
Jeff Dujon:
The next on the list of best wicketkeepers in the world comes Jeff dijon.
The unbelievable record:
The best thing about the cricket career of Jeff Dujon was In his 10-year long career he played a lot of matches including 81 test matches and he made sure that in which match he played his team never lost a particular match.
This was a unique feature about him. He could just direct the bowlers where to bowl and just turn the game.
Saving games:
Another great about Jeff dijon was that he used to bat as the lower order which also gives support to the team if the top order and the middle order somehow failed.
His batting at the lower order had saved the game for the west indies a number of times.
Brad Haddin:
Brad Haddin was one of the best Australian Wicketkeepers who also played a major role for Australia when they won the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup.
Brad Haddin being a destructive wicket keeper-batsman played in all three International formats of cricket and Before retiring from cricket he made sure that he left his mark in all the three formats of cricket.
Brad Haddin was kept as a second wicketkeeper for the Australian team as a backup for the Australian captain Adam Gilchrist.
Stats:
Brad Haddin proved to the world that he could have just been more than a backup wicketkeeper, Throughout his career, he achieved 270 test dismissals and 181 ODI dismissals.
Brendon McCullum:
The next one on the list of best wicketkeepers in the world stands the former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum.
Perfect Wicket keeper and Batsman:
The Wicket Keeping skills and the captaincy of Brandon McCullum were admired by cricketing legends all around the world.
Apart from being the greatest wicketkeeper for New Zealand, he was also one of the greatest batsmen New Zealand has ever produced.
Test Cricket:
Brandon McCullum went on to score the fastest century in test cricket and established the world record in just 56 balls.
He is also the first-ever New Zealand player to hit a triple century in a test match as well as scoring more than 1000 runs in a single year in test cricket.
Unfortunately, in 2016, McCullum declared that he would be retiring from cricket. In his career’s last test match too, he hit 170 runs which is a record.
For his terrific career, he received several awards and recognitions. Also, he served as the head coach of the team.
Ian Healy:
Another Australian cricketer to make it to the list of best wicket-keepers in the world is the legend of international cricket Ian Healy.
He was one of the best wicketkeeper-batsman the world of cricket had ever seen.
Stats:
His stunning performance in test matches made him the wicketkeeper with the most dismissals in test cricket.
He achieved 395 dismissals in test cricket with 366 catches and 29 stumping which is the highest number of test dismissals in the history of cricket.
In ODI, Healy got 233 dismissals in 168 matches with 194 catches and 39 stumps.
One of the best Batsman among Wicket keepers:
Other than that, he scored more than 5000 runs in his international career where he hit 4 centuries and 26 half-centuries.
His top score is 161 not out in the test matches. Ian Healy was added to the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame in 2008.
After his retirement, he started a car washing business which he is currently running with a capacity of washing more than 50 cars per hour.
Mark Boucher:
Mark Boucher was a great wicketkeeper and probably the best wicketkeeper ever for the South Africa cricket team.
Stats:
In test cricket, Mark Boucher left his mark with the South Africa cricket team with 555 dismissals in test cricket which included 532 catches and 23 stump-outs whereas in day international matches he has 425 dismissals with 403 catches and 22 stumpings.
Records Established:
Mark Boucher also holds the record for most catches by a test wicketkeeper. He was the first person in the world to have achieved 400 dismissals in test cricket.
Apart from this, he also holds the record of most dismissals as a wicket-keeper in all forms of the game which is 999.
He was also given the player of the year award a total of three times by the government of South Africa.
Batting stats:
Apart from being the best wicketkeeper for South Africa, Mark Boucher has also proved himself to be one of the best batsmen produced by South Africa.
He scored more than 10000 runs in his international career along with 6 centuries and 61 half-centuries.
His top score is 147 runs not out in One Day International. Sadly, he got retired in 2012 due to an eye injury. Since 2019, Boucher is working as the head coach of the South Africa National Cricket team.
Kumar Sangakkara:
Whenever we talk about the best wicketkeepers in the world, the list is always incomplete without a special mention for the former captain of the Sri Lanka national team Kumar Sangakkara.
Leader of Sri Lanka in international cricket:
The wicket-keeping skills had helped Sri Lanka reach a new highest in terms of international cricket. Under the captaincy of Kumar Sangakkara, Sri Lanka had become one of the greatest cricket countries.
Kumar Sangakkara also led Sri Lanka in the 2011 world cup final where they lost but led the team to win the 2014 world cup.
Sangakkara holds the record for highest dismissals in day international matches. Sangakkara holds one of the top three positions in all three formats of the game. He has hit more than 28000 runs in his career in all three formats combined with 63 centuries and 145 half-centuries.
Stats:
He achieved 202 dismissals in test cricket with 182 catches and 20 stumpings while in the day international matches, he achieved 501 dismissals with 402 catches and 99 stumps. He holds the record of most dismissals by a wicket-keeper in One-day internationals.
Adam Gilchrist:
Another Australian to make it to the list of best wicket-keepers in the world is the legendary Adam Gilchrist. Adam Gilchrist is considered one of the best wicketkeepers and greatest batsmen in the history of cricket.
Destructive Batsman:
Adam Gilchrist was a destructive batsman who went on to hit more than 15000 runs in international cricket with 32 centuries and 81 half-centuries. His highest ever score is 204 runs not out in test cricket.
He was the first player ever to hit more than 100 sixes in test cricket. He is one of the only three players who have won three world cup titles in their life. Gilchrist won several awards for his stunning performances throughout his career.
Stats:
As a wicketkeeper, he had 416 dismissals in test cricket which included 379 catches and 37 stumps while in One-day internationals, he had 472 dismissals with 417 catches and 55 stumps.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni:
Dhoni stands at the top of the list of best wicket-keepers in the world. His quick hands and out-of-the-box thinking have changed how modern-day cricket works. Under the captaincy of MS Dhoni, a number of great cricketers have risen and have shown their worth at the international level.
Batting stats:
Dhoni has played around 538 international matches in his career in which he scored more than 17000 runs with 16 centuries and 106 half-centuries. His top score is 183 not out in One Day International cricket.
Stats among Wicket keepers
Being a wicketkeeper, he achieved 294 dismissals with 256 catches and 38 stumps in the test and 444 dismissals with 321 catches and 123 stumpings in day international matches. Apart from this, Dhoni also holds the record for the fastest stumping in the history of cricket which was in just 0.08 seconds.
Under the captaincy of Dhoni, India has won the 2011 world cup, the first edition of the t20 world cup in 2007, the champions trophy, and a number of series.
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