Of all three formats, the one in which wicket keeping is the most difficult is, test cricket. It is mainly due to the fact that the keeper will have to do the keeping for a longer duration than in limited overs. We will now have a look at keepers who have effected the most dismissals in test cricket.
1. Matt Prior
Matt Prior was an English wicketkeeper. He was a good No.7 batsman for England and was a magnificent keeper too. Despite playing for just around 7 years, he had more than 250 dismissals to his name. His career was cut short by his Achilles injury problems which later required operations.
Prior had 256 dismissals in his test career, which consisted of 243 catches and 13 stumpings.
2. BJ Watling
When Brendon McCullum decided to stop donning the gloves in tests, BJ Watling took up the mantle of being the test wicket keeper for New Zealand. His wicket keeping skills were excellent. With respect to batting, he specialised in rescuing the team from collapses.
Watling had 265 dismissals in his test career, which consisted of 257 catches and 8 stumpings.
3. Alan Knott
Alan Knott was an English wicketkeeper. He predominantly played in the 1970s. He was known to both attack and defend the same kind of delivery with equal ease. His wicket keeping was said to be smooth and nimble.
Knott had 269 dismissals in his test career, which consisted of 250 catches and 19 stumpings.
4. Brad Haddin
Brad Haddin was an Australian wicket keeper. He made his test debut at a late age of 30 due to the keeper slot being occupied by Adam Gilchrist, who was one of the best keepers across the world. Haddin soon started showing flashes of his own brilliance in keeping in wicket keeping and was Australia’s designated keeper in all formats.
Haddin had 270 dismissals in his test career, which consisted of 262 catches and 8 stumpings.
5. Jeff Dujon
Jeff Dujon was the wicketkeeper for the West Indies in the 1980s. West Indies had a fearsome pace battery and Dujon used to pull off blinders behind the stumps to keep up with them. He was also a good batsman.
Dujon had 270 dismissals in his test career, which consisted of 265 catches and 5 stumpings.
6. MS Dhoni
Dhoni was the wicketkeeper for India in the late 2000s and early 2010s. He was exceptional behind the stumps when spinners were bowling. He used to generate dismissals out of nowhere. He was a fighter, in batting and converted a lot of potential and obvious defeats to a fighting draw.
Dhoni had 294 dismissals in his test career, which consisted of 256 catches and 38 stumpings.
7. Rod Marsh
Rod Marsh was an irreplaceable part of Australian test cricket during the course of his career. He and the Australian pacer Dennis Lillee together formed a formidable combo as the ‘c Marsh b Lillee’ was a regular feature in the scorecard. He was also a proper batsman on his own right, as he led many lower fightbacks.
Marsh had 355 dismissals in his test career, which consisted of 343 catches and 12 stumpings.
8. Ian Healy
Ian Healy was an Australian wicket keeper. He predominantly played in the 1990s. His main challenge was to keep wickets for Shane Warne who used to produce crazy turn. He was an excellent wicketkeeper.
Healy had 395 dismissals in his test career, which consisted of 366 catches and 29 stumpings.
9. Adam Gilchrist
Adam Gilchrist was an Australian wicketkeeper. He predominantly played in the 2000s. He changed the definition of a keeper-batsman for the modern times. While all teams were satisfied with a good glovesman behind the stumps, keeping his batting skills as an afterthought, Gilchrist was a legitimate batsman and could play as a specialist batsman in any team of the world. He has won Australia multiple matches with just his batting.
Gilchrist had 416 dismissals in his test career, which consisted of 379 catches and 37 stumpings.
10. Mark Boucher
Mark Boucher holds the record for most dismissals in test cricket. Overall, in international cricket he was just 2 short of 1000 dismissals. As for batting, he was known to turn up for South Africa in clutch moments. His final series got disrupted for him when a bail hit his eye in the warm up game and his career halted abruptly.
Boucher had 555 dismissals in his test career, which consisted of 532 catches and 23 stumpings.