T20I Cricket is the shortest format of the sport. It is also the newest format that has been played for only 20 years. These days the number of T20I Matches played exceeds the number of ODIs played. There have already been many great wicket Keepers that have played the format. They also have to be very good batters.
Let’s look at the Top 10 Greatest Wicket Keepers of all time in T20I Cricket
1) MS Dhoni
The 2007 World Cup winning captain is the number 1 Wicket keeper of all time in this format. He has played 08 T20Is for India. He has scored 1617 runs with 2 half centuries. He has taken 57 Catches as a Wicket keeper in this format. MS Dhoni has 34 stumpings to his credit in T20I Cricket. He will be the man who made T20I Cricket popular by winning the first World Championship. MS Dhoni was the fastest hands of all time in this format as well.
2) Quinton De Kock
The South African opening batter is the second best Wicket Keeper to ever play this format. He is also one of the best batters to ever be a keeper in this format. He has so far played 93 T20Is for South Africa. He has made 2585 runs In which he has hit 1 hundred and 16 half centuries. Quinton De Kock has taken 84 catches so far and has 18 stumpings in T20I Cricket. He will look to cross 150 catches and cross the 3000 runs mark. Check here Best T20I Innings of Quinton de Kock
3) Jos Buttler
He is one of the most experienced wicket Keepers to have ever played in this format. Jos Buttler is also a World Cup winning captain. He has played 144 T20Is so far for England. He has scored 3869 runs. He has hit 28 half centuries and 1 hundred. Jos Buttler has taken 75 Catches as a wicket Keeper and he also has 13 stumpings for England so far. Jos Buttler will look to be the first England batter to Cross 4000 runs in this format and cross the 100 Catches mark.
4) Mohammad Rizwan
At number 4 is perhaps one of the best Pakistani wicket Keepers to have played T20I Cricket. When Pakistan was at its peak in this format it was Mohammad Rizwan who was the wicket Keeper. He has played 106 T20Is for Pakistan in his career. He has made 3414 runs. Mohammad Rizwan has hit 30 half centuries and 1 hundred. As a wicket Keeper he has taken 49 Catches. He also has 12 stumpings in this format. He has been out of the team for quite a while and it doesn’t look like he will make a comeback.
5) Nicholas Pooran
The wicket Keeper batter from West Indies is the number 5 in this list. He is the best Wicket Keeper the West Indies have seen in this format. So far, he has played in 106 T20Is for West Indies. He has made 2275 runs. Nicholas Pooran has hit 13 half centuries in T20I Cricket. He is one of the most destructive batters in the world. He has taken 54 catches as a Wicket keeper. Nicholas Pooran will want to end his career with more than 100 Catches.
6) Matthew Wade
The Australian Wicket keeper is the next keeper to be in this list. He is the first wicket Keeper from Australia to be in this list. Matthew Wade has played 92 T20Is for Australia. In those Matches he has scored 1202 runs where he has hit 3 half centuries. Matthew Wade is also a winner of the T20I World Cup. As a wicket Keeper he has taken 58 Catches. He is one of the longest serving wicket Keepers that Australia have seen in this format. Adam Gilchrist could not make it to this list.
7) Brendon Mccullum
The New Zealand legend Wicket keeper Brendon Mccullum is in this list. He is a pioneer in the format. He has played 71 T20Is in his career. He made 2140 runs where he hit 2 hundreds and 13 half centuries. Brendon Mccullum is one of those rare wicket Keepers with more than 1 hundred in this format. As a wicket Keeper he took 24 Catches and he had 8 stumpings in T20I Cricket. He was an inspiration for many young wicket Keepers in New Zealand.
8) Kamran Akmal
The second wicket Keeper from Pakistan in this list. Kamran Akmal is the wicket Keeper who was so good that the batters were afraid of getting stumped. He played 58 T20Is for Pakistan. He was a part of the 2009 World Cup winning team. He made 987 runs with 5 half centuries. He has taken 28 catches as a wicket Keeper. The amazing thing is that he has 32 stumpings in his career. There are very few keepers in history who have more stumpings than Catches.
9) Kumar Sangakkara
Kumar Sangakkara is one of the rarest wicket Keepers that are in the Top 10 list of Wicket keepers in all 3 formats. He played 56 T20Is for Sri Lanka. He was the winner of the 2014 World Cup. He made 1382 runs and in which he hit 8 half centuries. As a wicket Keeper he took 25 Catches. He also had 20 stumpings to his credit in T20I Cricket. Kumar Sangakkara was one of the greatest wicket Keeper batters of all time. Sri Lanka have not yet found a keeper as good as him.
10) Rishabh Pant
The last Wicket keeper in this list is Rishabh Pant. The list started with an Indian and it will end with an Indian. The wicket Keeper in the 2024 T20I World Cup when India won. He has so far played in 76 T20Is for India. He has scored 1209 runs with 3 half centuries. Rishabh has taken 38 catches as a wicket Keeper and he also has 11 stumpings. He will look to get close to 75 Catches till the end of his career. He is one of the most destructive batters in the world.
