Top Wicketkeepers from inception of Test Cricket in 1877 up to the First World War and beyond

 

Arthur Lilley came closest to the Test double of 1000 runs and 100 dismissals before the First World War.

John McCarthy ‘Jack’ Blackham kept wickets for Australia in the inaugural Test in 1877 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. He went on to play 35 Test matches till 1894, pouching 37 catches and effecting 24 stumpings. A right-handed batsman he scored exactly 800 runs at an average of 15.68, with 4 half-centuries and a top score of 74. Blackham played 275 First-class matches, bringing off 274 catches and 181 stumpings. He scored 6395 runs at an average of 16.78, with a hundred and 26 fifties and a highest score of 109. Jack Blackham was doubtlessly the pioneer among top-class wicketkeepers.

Arthur Frederick Augustus ‘Dick’ Lilley made his Test debut for England in 1896. He also played 35 Test matches till 1909, holding 70 catches and bringing off 22 stumpings. A right-handed batsman he scored 903 runs at an average of 20.52, with 4 half-centuries and a top score of 84. Dick Lilley came very close to becoming the first wicketkeeper-batsman to achieve the Test double of 1000 runs and 100 dismissals, finishing with 903 runs and 92 dismissals. Lilley played 416 First-class matches, taking 714 catches and effecting 197 stumpings. He scored 15,597 runs at an average of 26.30, with 16 hundreds and 77 fifties and a highest score of 171. Dick Lilley was arguably the finest wicketkeeper-batsman up to the First World War.

James Joseph Kelly made his Test debut for Australia also in 1896. He played the most Test matches by a wicketkeeper before the First World War, 36 till 1905, taking 43 catches and effecting 20 stumpings. A right-handed batsman he scored 664 runs at an average of 17.02, with a highest score of 46 not out. James Kelly played 185 First-class matches, taking 245 catches and effecting 112 stumpings. He scored 4108 runs at an average of 19.94, with 3 hundreds and 16 fifties and a highest score of 108.

Hanson ‘Sammy’ Carter made his Test debut for Australia in 1907. He played 20 Test matches before the First World War, taking 28 catches and effecting 10 stumpings. A right-handed batsman he scored 655 runs at an average of 21.83, with a highest score of 72 and 4 fifties. After the War, Sammy Carter played another 8 Test matches till 1921, finishing with 44 catches and 21 stumpings. He aggregated 873 runs at an average of 22.97, not scoring any more fifty. Sammy Carter played 128 First-class matches, taking 181 catches and effecting 89 stumpings. He scored 2897 runs at an average of 20.11, with 2 hundreds and 13 fifties and a highest score of 149.

Herbert ‘Bert’ Strudwick’s career too straddled the First World War, making his Test debut for England in 1910. He played 11 Test matches before the War, taking 23 catches and effecting 8 stumpings. A right-hander, Strudwick did not have much pretentions as a batsman. He scored 91 runs at an average of 7.58, with a highest score of 18 till the War. Bert Strudwick played a total of 28 Test matches till 1926, finishing with 61 catches and 12 stumpings. He aggregated 230 runs at an average of 7.93, and a highest score of 24. Strudwick played 674 First-class matches, taking 1237 catches and effecting 258 stumpings. He scored 6445 runs at an average of 10.88, with 9 fifties and a highest score of 93.