The man behind the stumps has been one of the pivotal players of the team since the inception of the game. A wicketkeeper needs to have a special skill set compared to other players and one who has it, guarantees himself a spot in the playing XI. In all formats of the game, a good wicket-keeper can turn the game with one exceptional act; a diving catch, lightning speed stumping or even a runout. Since the advent of T20 cricket and especially IPL, the playing XI includes relatively more number of batsmen and a wicket-keeper should prove his worth through his batting ability as well. Moreover, the evolution of wicket keeping has seen creative techniques such as effective run-outs without looking and guiding spinners. Let’s have a peek at the best wicket keepers in IPL history.
Most dismissals by wicketkeepers in IPL history – IPL 2008 – IPL 2022
| S.N | Player | Matches | Innings | Dismissals | Dis/Inn |
| 1 | MS Dhoni | 222 | 215 | 163 | 0.758 |
| 2 | Dinesh Karthik | 215 | 198 | 148 | 0.747 |
| 3 | Robin Uthappa | 195 | 114 | 90 | 0.789 |
| 4 | Wriddhiman Saha | 133 | 112 | 82 | 0.732 |
| 5 | Parthiv Patel | 139 | 122 | 81 | 0.663 |
| 6 | NV Ojha | 113 | 111 | 75 | 0.675 |
| 7 | Rishabh Pant | 85 | 75 | 67 | 0.893 |
| 8 | AC Gilchrist | 80 | 80 | 67 | 0.837 |
| 9 | Q de Kock | 79 | 72 | 64 | 0.888 |
| 10 | KL Rahul | 96 | 62 | 47 | 0.758 |
| 11 | Sanju Samson | 122 | 63 | 47 | 0.746 |
| 12 | KC Sangakkara | 71 | 51 | 43 | 0.843 |
| 13 | AB de Villiers | 184 | 52 | 36 | 0.692 |
| 14 | SP Goswami | 31 | 28 | 23 | .821 |
| 15 | Kedar Jadhav | 93 | 33 | 23 | .696 |
Wriddhiman Saha
The right-handed wicket keeper batsman from Gujarat had a good tenure in IPL as well as in the Indian test team. Though he made his IPL debut in the inaugural season itself, he started being a consistent pick in 2014 for Kings XI Punjab in their best season. He scored a century in the final of IPL 2014 against KKR before facing the unfortunate failure. Before an array of injuries pulled his career slow, he had a few good seasons from 2014 to 2017 in IPL. He made a comeback show in 2020 with only just 4 matches scoring 214 runs. IN his IPL career, he has played 113 watches and piled up 2110 runs with 82 dismissals behind the wickets. The 37-year old is currently in the Gujarat Titans squad with a 1.90 cr price tag.
READ | Top 10 Fastest Stumping in Cricket History
Parthiv Patel
Parthiv Patel comes under the rarely talented short wicket-keepers but had an enormously successful career in the IPL. He is also an Indian player who has played for the most IPL franchises. Since 2008, Parthiv has been the go to opening batsman for most of the teams he has represented. Having a few good seasons across his 12 year IPL career, he retired from all forms of cricket in 2020. In 139 matches, the Karnataka wicket-keeper has scored 2848 runs and effected 81 dismissals.
Robin Uthappa | Best Wicket Keepers in IPL
There are only a few Indian batsmen who can do explosive batting with absolute classy technique. Robin Uthappa is simply one of them. Even at the age of 36, the Chennai-based wicket-keeper scores in style for the Chennai Super Kings. His best IPL stint was for the Kolkata Knight Riders, where he was an inevitable piece of their 2012 and 2014 winning squad. He won the orange cap in 2014 scoring a whopping 660 runs, which is the highest by any wicket-keeper batsman in IPL till date. From 195 IPL matches, Robbie has 4800 runs with a strike rate of 130.58. He has been a fielder for some seasons and still managed to claim 90 dismissals as a wicket-keeper. It is the third-highest in IPL.
Dinesh Karthik | Best Wicket Keepers in IPL
Perhaps, the most unlucky wicket-keeper batsman who had been in the shadow of MS Dhoni throughout his career, Dinesh Karthik has played 200 IPL matches in his career scoring 3804 runs. Mostly playing in the middle-order, Dinesh provided those priceless cameos and even batted under pressure a few times for his respective side. He has been into a few franchises because of how valuable a player he is. In 2015, the Tamil Nadu wicket-keeper was bought by RCB for an astonishing 10.5 crores in the auction. After his heroics in the 2018 Nidahas Trophy final, he was appointed as the captain of KKR. In 2022, he plays for RCB. He has got 147 dismissals in his IPL career.
READ | Top 10 Best Wicket Keeper In The World
MS Dhoni | Best Wicket Keepers in IPL
Was there ever a doubt? Mahendra Singh Dhoni is the best wicket-keeper in IPL and unarguably the best India ever had. Captain cool has revolutionized the game not only with his tactics, but also with the unorthodox technique behind the stumps. MS Dhoni-led CSK for 12 seasons and won 4 IPL trophies. He is one of the greatest middle-order batsmen and finishers in world cricket. In a total of 222 games, Dhoni piled up 4812 runs playing at number 4 and below at an average of 40.10 and strike rate of 136.01. His lightning speed stumping and quick thinking behind the wickets are unparalleled. With 161 dismissals in IPL, MS Dhoni continues to be the best wicketkeeper in IPL 2022 at age of 41.
Apart from these individual contributions of wicket-keepers, you can also take a look into the IPL winners list to keep yourself updated and cherish the amazing moments.
