Wicketkeepers who can bat are always an asset to a batting line-up. In the last few decades, the role of the wicketkeeper in cricket has undergone a significant shift.
Players like Adam Gilchrist, Mark Boucher, Jos Buttler, Quinton de Kock, Kumar Sangakkara, and Rishabh Pant have played vital roles in their team’s batting, making themselves perfect all-rounders for their sides.
Another important name on the list, MS Dhoni, was a rare successful combination of captain-wicketkeeper-batsman. He did all three things effectively for team India in all three formats and his IPL side, Chennai Super Kings, for a long time and was quite successful in almost everything he did. Find out 47 glorious stats of MS Dhoni in every format he played.
This article will sort the wicketkeepers in the order of total runs scored by them in all three formats combined.
Most Runs by Wicketkeeper in all formats
| PLAYER | RUNS AS WK | INNINGS | AVERAGE | HIGH SCORE | 100s/50s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kumar Sangakkara (SL) | 17840 | 474 | 41.87 | 230 | 30/110 |
| MS Dhoni (IND) | 17266 | 526 | 44.96 | 224 | 16/108 |
| Adam Gilchrist (AUS) | 15252 | 424 | 38.80 | 204* | 33/79 |
| Quinton de Kock (SA) | 12588 | 331 | 40.73 | 178 | 28/68 |
| Mushfiqur Rahim (BAN) | 11998 | 422 | 33.23 | 219* | 13/68 |
| Mark Boucher (SA) | 10463 | 447 | 29.06 | 147* | 6/61 |
| Andy Flower (ZIM) | 10249 | 283 | 40.83 | 232* | 16/69 |
| Jos Buttler (ENG) | 10013 | 321 | 37.36 | 162* | 13/59 |
| Alec Stewart (ENG) | 8557 | 277 | 34.22 | 173 | 10/49 |
| Brendon McCullum (NZ) | 8212 | 286 | 32.84 | 185 | 9/44 |
Key Insights
Kumar Sangakkara and MS Dhoni are the only two wicketkeepers to score more than 10000 runs in a single format. Both these players achieved the 10000-run mark in ODIs while playing as wicketkeepers. Also, find the other batters who are part of the 10000-run club in ODI here.
MS Dhoni is the only keeper-batter to bat more than 500 innings in international cricket. He has batted 526 innings in all three formats while playing as a wicketkeeper. He is also the most non-dismissed keeper-batter (142 not outs) in the cricketing world.
Andy Flower’s unbeaten score of 232 against India in a Test match in Nagpur in 2000 is the highest ever score by a wicketkeeper in any format of international cricket.
The Zimbabwean is also the only wicketkeeper to smash 140+ scores in both innings of a Test match. Check the non-keeper-batters to achieve the same feat in the longest format here.
AB de Villiers, who is not on this list, is the only keeper-batter to achieve a 50+ average with the bat among those who have batted at least 100 innings.
Australia’s Adam Gilchrist dominates the century-scoring list (33), whereas Sangakkara tops the 50+ scores (140) as wicketkeeper in all formats. Check the same for ODIs and Tests here.
Read Next | Kumar Sangakkara vs Adam Gilchrist – Who’s the Best?
