The Rise of the Wicketkeeper-Batsman: History & Top 10 All-Time

For most of cricket's history, the wicketkeeper was a specialist. They batted at no.7 or no.8. They averaged 20 with the bat. They were picked for their gloves, and their batting was a bonus. Then in the late 1990s, one Australian arrived at the top of an Australian batting order and rewrote the role permanently.

This is the story of how the wicketkeeper became the most demanding position in cricket — a top-order run-scorer who also keeps wickets to a world-class spin attack — and the ten best wicketkeeper-batsmen of all time, ranked.

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The pre-Gilchrist era: keepers who couldn't bat

For the first hundred years of Test cricket, the wicketkeeper's job was almost entirely behind the stumps. Batting was a side-hustle. The greatest keepers of the early modern era — Godfrey Evans, Alan Knott, Bob Taylor — were technically magnificent but averaged in the low 20s with the bat.

A few exceptions tried to break this convention:

• Les Ames (England, 1929-1939) — averaged 40.56 in Tests, kept wickets in 47 of his 47 caps. The first true wicketkeeper-batsman, and almost forgotten today.
• Andy Flower (Zimbabwe, 1992-2003) — averaged 51.55 in Tests despite playing for a struggling side. The most underrated wicketkeeper-batsman in history.
• Alec Stewart (England, 1990-2003) — averaged 39.54 in Tests, more than capable as an opener.

Even these exceptions, though, kept the role's ceiling at "useful no.6." None of them changed how the position was thought about. That was waiting for one player.

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Adam Gilchrist: the man who broke the position

When Gilchrist debuted for Australia in 1999, he walked in at no.7 with Australia 158/5, took the second ball of his innings for four through cover, and finished the day on 81. He turned a precarious match into a winning total within a session.

Over the next nine years, Gilchrist did this — relentlessly — for the most dominant Test side in modern cricket. He averaged 47.60 in Tests, with 17 centuries, at a strike rate of 81.95. He was the first wicketkeeper to score 100 in a World Cup final (149 vs Sri Lanka, 2007). He was the first keeper to score 1,000 ODI runs in a calendar year. He hit 16 sixes in a single Test innings against South Africa in 2002, then a record.

The numbers undersell the impact. Gilchrist taught two generations of cricket coaches that a wicketkeeper could be picked for his batting first, with his keeping a quality bonus. Every ranking team since 2007 has tried to find their Gilchrist. Some have come close.

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The criteria for ranking wicketkeeper-batsmen

A genuine wicketkeeper-batsman must:

1. Bat in the top six in at least one format for an extended period
2. Keep wickets to spin and pace at international level
3. Have a non-trivial sample size — minimum ~50 Tests or ~150 ODIs
4. Have done it for a team that won at international level (this matters less, but it's a meaningful filter)

Pure-batting test averages aren't the only measure. Strike rate, dismissal rate per chance behind the stumps, and longevity all count. Below is our ranking.

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The 10 best wicketkeeper-batsmen of all time

#	Player	Country	Tests / ODIs	Test avg	ODI SR	Defining moment
1	Adam Gilchrist	Australia	96 / 287	47.60	96.94	2007 WC Final 149
2	MS Dhoni	India	90 / 350	38.09	87.56	2011 WC Final 91*
3	Kumar Sangakkara	Sri Lanka	134 / 404	57.40	78.86	287 vs South Africa
4	Andy Flower	Zimbabwe	63 / 213	51.55	74.65	540 not out vs SA
5	Quinton de Kock	South Africa	60+ / 150+	39.00	95.50	178 vs Australia
6	Jos Buttler	England	60+ / 180+	32.00	121 (T20I)	2022 T20 WC Final
7	Brendon McCullum	New Zealand	101 / 260	38.64	96.37	302 vs India
8	Rishabh Pant	India	50+ / 30+	43.00	116 (T20I)	89* Gabba 2021
9	Ian Healy	Australia	119 / 168	27.39	64.30	1992-99 reign
10	Mark Boucher	South Africa	147 / 295	30.30	84.94	555 dismissals

A few notes on the ranking:

• Sangakkara ranks highly despite playing as a specialist batter for a large portion of his career; his keeping was world-class for the first 8 years of his career.
• De Kock sits at no.5 partly for his ODI strike rate, the highest among regular wicketkeepers in the modern era.
• Pant at no.8 is a long-term bet; his Test average and keeping have already exceeded what Dhoni was doing at the same career stage.
• Healy and Boucher rank lower for batting but higher for the longevity and quality of their keeping. Both are near-certain Hall of Fame keepers.

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Adam Gilchrist: the standard

Why Gilchrist is no.1:

• Test average of 47.60 as a no.7 — higher than most no.4s of his era
• Strike rate of 81.95 in Tests — the highest sustained Test SR in the position
• 17 Test centuries — more than any wicketkeeper before or since
• Two World Cup-winning innings (1999, 2003, 2007) — including the 149 in the 2007 final
• 96 Tests, 287 ODIs — a long career with consistent excellence

Beyond the numbers: Gilchrist redefined the position. Every wicketkeeper-batsman in the post-2000 generation grew up wanting to be him.

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MS Dhoni: the captain who kept

Dhoni is no.2 because of two things:

1. The 2011 World Cup final innings (91 not out off 79 balls, batting at no.5, in a chase) — perhaps the single most consequential ODI innings in Indian cricket history.
2. A career as a finisher, not as a top-order batter. Dhoni's ODI strike rate of 87.56 was achieved batting at 5/6/7 in chases.

Dhoni was also a genuinely world-class wicketkeeper, particularly to spin, with the famous "fastest hands in the game" praise from Ian Chappell. His career numbers — 17,266 international runs, 829 dismissals, the only captain to win all three ICC limited-overs trophies — make him a permanent fixture in the top three.

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The modern wave: De Kock, Buttler, Pant

The current generation is the deepest in wicketkeeper-batsman history.

Quinton de Kock

A pure wicketkeeper-batsman in the Gilchrist mould. His ODI strike rate of 95.50 sits among the all-time best. His Test record (39 average, 6 centuries) is excellent for a no.6/7.

Jos Buttler

The most explosive T20I wicketkeeper-batsman ever. T20I strike rate of 121 — the highest sustained SR for any keeper in the format. His 2022 T20 World Cup final innings (26* in a chase) won England the title.

Rishabh Pant

The most counter-cultural keeper-batsman of the modern era. Pant attacks against the new ball, attacks against spin, takes risks the textbook would condemn — and averages 43 in Tests doing it. His 89 not out at the Gabba in January 2021, completing India's historic chase, is the single most important Test innings of the past decade.

For a deeper read on Pant specifically, see our Rishabh Pant career retrospective.

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The unsung greats: keepers ranked higher than their batting

Three keepers who barely made the top 10 — but who were genuinely world-class behind the stumps:

Mark Boucher

555 international dismissals. The most by any wicketkeeper, ever. His batting average of 30 is solid for a no.7. His value to South Africa was measured behind the stumps.

Ian Healy

The standard for Australian keeping in the 1990s. Caught everything off Shane Warne. The reason Australia's spin attack was world-class for a decade.

Bob Taylor (England, retired)

Did not make the top 10 because his batting average was 16. But his keeping was statistically the cleanest in cricket history — a 99.6 percent dismissal-take rate.

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What the data tells us

A few patterns from the modern era (post-2000):

1. Wicketkeeper-batsmen now bat higher. The average position for a starting wicketkeeper has moved from no.7 (1980s) to no.6 (2000s) to no.5/6 (2020s).
2. Keeping standards have risen. Modern keepers take 96 percent of regulation chances, vs 89 percent in the 1980s.
3. Strike rates have exploded. Modern wicketkeepers bat at strike rates 80+ in ODIs and 130+ in T20Is — figures that would have been unthinkable for the position 25 years ago.

For more on T20 batting evolution, see our pinch hitter cricket explainer.

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Cross-format performance

The hardest version of the wicketkeeper-batsman test is performing across all three international formats. The all-format greats:

• Gilchrist — Tests + ODIs
• Dhoni — ODIs + T20Is + Tests
• De Kock — All three formats
• Sangakkara — Tests + ODIs
• Buttler — Tests + ODIs + T20Is

A few keepers have specialised — Pant primarily Tests, McCullum primarily T20s — but the all-format greats define the role.

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The future of the position

In 2026, every Test side has a top-six batting wicketkeeper. The position is no longer specialised. The question now is whether teams can find a keeper-batsman who also keeps to genuine pace and spin without errors — that combination is rarer.

Three names to watch in the next decade:

• Rishabh Pant (India) — already established as a top-order Test no.5
• Sam Konstas (Australia) — Konstas is primarily an opener, but Australia's next gen is wicketkeeper-light
• Kyle Verreynne (South Africa) — De Kock's Test successor

For more on India's wicketkeeper succession plan, see our Indian Test wicketkeeper depth chart.

For broader Test cricket reading, see our most runs in Test cricket all-time list and the highest individual scores in Test cricket.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Who is the best wicketkeeper-batsman of all time? Adam Gilchrist of Australia is widely regarded as the best, with a Test average of 47.60, 17 Test centuries, and three World Cup wins.

Did MS Dhoni or Adam Gilchrist have a better career? By Test numbers, Gilchrist was statistically superior. Dhoni's ODI captaincy record (3 ICC trophies) gives him an edge in the white-ball arena. Most cricket writers rank Gilchrist marginally higher overall, with Dhoni a clear no.2.

Who has the most dismissals in international cricket? Mark Boucher of South Africa, with 555 dismissals across all three formats — the most by any wicketkeeper.

Is Rishabh Pant the best modern wicketkeeper-batsman? He is among the most exciting. His Test average of 43 is the highest by an Indian wicketkeeper, and his 89 not out at the Gabba in 2021 is one of the most important Test innings of the modern era.

Why did the wicketkeeper-batsman role become so dominant? Adam Gilchrist proved between 1999 and 2008 that a top-order batter could keep wickets at world-class level. Every ranking team since has tried to replicate that template, leading to the position becoming a top-six pick.

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The wicketkeeper used to be picked for his gloves and forgiven his bat. Today, the wicketkeeper is picked for his bat, and his gloves are a passing test. Adam Gilchrist did that. Everyone else has been chasing him.