CMS Test XI of last 50 Years- Wicketkeeper.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Not that straightforward to pick. There are too many to choose from. De Villiers has only played 24 games as a keeper, but he has the best average of anyone to have scored 2000 runs (as a keeper) with seven tons (only Flower and Gilchrist have more hundreds, though a lot more). I picked him, but I've taken 2500 runs as my baseline generally, and this is the link for that below.


http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine ... pe=batting

Anyone who scored so many Test runs as a keeper must (I presumed) have been catching and stumping well enough to keep getting selected to do the job, in order to get the opportunity to score all those runs... But I've only chosen the top ten based on batting . The other five have been selected based on dismissals, minimum 50 games. This is the link for dismissals.

http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine ... e=fielding

First ten in the ballot are in order of average, last five in order of dismissals (excluding those already in the first ten).

[Dr Cricket]

Can only be one option here Gilchrist.
Best keeper batsman ever.
Keeping very good and a good batsman.
Here what people should take into account when voting here is whether they actually want to be a keeper long term.
De villiers may be a great keeper in the making but he doesn't actually want to do the job.
Sangakarra likewise although Sanga wasn't actually a great keeper he was quite ordinary.
A lot of the time if a keeper can choose between keeping and batting they choose batting every time.

Andy flower is an interesting choice never saw him play so can't comment on him but great stats, surprised he is underrated by the media and people generally.

[Arthur Crabtree]

I wanted to get Syed Kirmani in, but his figures didn't really demand it. I thought Engineer, Mongia or More might figure. There's Deryck Murray of the great WI side. Denesh Ramdin nearly made it on either criteria. England fans remember Russell and Taylor fondly. Kamran Akmal scored remarkably well, and I had to do a bit of work to keep him out. Smith, Wadsworth, Watling, Parore and McCullum of New Zealand? The other Jayawardene of SL? Dave Richardson? Moin Khan or Rashid Latif? Mushfiqur of BD? As ever, these might be in the fifteen but probably aren't going to be the one. But vote for them in the thread if they are your keeper.

[Arthur Crabtree]

I kept it simple. Adam Gilchrist. Wonderful bat. Kept to great bowlers.

[Arthur Crabtree]

After Gilly, I would have got for Healy, who was a superb keeper, and a nuggety bat. Might be worth hearing a few second choices, given how prominent Gilchrist is likely to be.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Andy flower is an interesting choice never saw him play so can't comment on him but great stats, surprised he is underrated by the media and people generally.

Averaged 53.7 as keeper, 35.5 just as a batter (but only eight games).

Averages over 50 in all continents except England/Europe.

Had the responsibility of being captain, keeper, and best player, and for Zimbabwe, which can't have been easy. Had to bat at five, while keeping, and may well have kept for a long time when the opposition batted, and not always had much rest before coming in. Averages 55 at number five.

[Arthur Crabtree]

If you haven't yet, vote for a number three.

viewtopic.php?f=31&t=20730

Or a number four and five.

viewtopic.php?f=31&t=20733

[Dr Cricket]

Andy flower is an interesting choice never saw him play so can't comment on him but great stats, surprised he is underrated by the media and people generally.

Averaged 53.7 as keeper, 35.5 just as a batter (but only eight games).

Averages over 50 in all continents except England/Europe.

Had the responsibility of being captain, keeper, and best player, and for Zimbabwe, which can't have been easy. Had to bat at five, while keeping, and may well have kept for a long time when the opposition batted, and not always had much rest before coming in. Averages 55 at number five.

yeah that was one reason why it baffled me, everyone keeps on saying Gilchrist was the first one but you can argue Flower was the first real batting Wicketkeeper.

My second choice would be Prasanna Jayawardene wonderful keeper.
Although My best keeper would be Foster.

[Gingerfinch]

I also went for Gilchrist. After him? Flower, though I saw little of him, Dujon, who was a good keeper to quicks (had to be) and was a graceful batsman. I never saw Knott play, so can't really comment. Alec Stewart was a fine batsman, and competent keeper.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Flower only played two Tests in UK.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Knotty was a superb keeper. Always seemed to be batting against incredible pace attacks too. And a proper eccentric keeper.

[Durhamfootman]

I do remember Knotty (on very grainy TV pictures) and I remember him as an exceptionally athletic keeper. As AC suggests, here is one person with a soft spot for Jack Russell..... I even went to a Durham Gloucs match (before I ever became a member) just to say that I'd seen Russell keep wicket, albeit at the very end of his career.

Unfortunately it's too hard to look past Gilly as the finest wkbat of the last many years, which is a great pity for other better glovemen who just weren't as reliably potent with bat in hand. The sheer destructive nature of Gilchrist and his ability to turn a match on its head in the blink of an eye was, imo, one of the reasons why Australia were so dominant for so long.

[Durhamfootman]

No thread for no.6 AC?

WK at 6 seems an unlikely assumption

[Arthur Crabtree]

I'll come back to number six. Options might depend on that happens at 4&5, and choices for all rounder could depend on who the bowlers are. I'll do pace bowlers then spinners next.

[Arthur Crabtree]

I suspect Splinters will go for Flower, so I don't think this will be whitewash.