This is a chronological list of England Test wicket-keepers . The list comprises players who were the designated wicket-keeper at the toss, so the number of matches does not include times when a player has acted as a stand-in keeper, or appeared as a batsman only.
Alan Knott kept wicket in 95 Test matches for England, and is currently the record-holder, both in terms of caps as wicket keeper, and dismissals. [1] Godfrey Evans is the record-holder for stumpings. [1] A number of the players listed have played a large number of Test matches as specialist batsmen, for example Jonny Bairstow has played 74 Tests in total, as of January 2021. [2]
On occasions, another player has stepped in to relieve the primary wicket-keeper due to injury or illness. Unless the relief player was himself a recognised Test wicket-keeper, he is not included here. The list also does not include Billy Murdoch, who kept in the second innings of his only Test for England, [3] having previously appeared as wicket-keeper in one of his 18 Tests for Australia. He and Jonny Bairstow are the only replacement keepers to make a stumping for England. Eight stand-in keepers have taken a total of ten catches as replacements, [4] [ citation needed ][ original research? ] including two by Jonny Bairstow.
On one occasion in 1986, two replacement wicket-keepers were called on, neither of whom were members of the side, and one was a member of the crowd. Former England keeper, Bob Taylor, aged 45 and retired from professional cricket, stepped in at a Test match to replace Bruce French, with the permission of the New Zealand captain, after French had been hit in the head while batting. [5] Later, Hampshire's Bobby Parks, (son of former England wicket keeper Jim Parks) who did not otherwise make a Test appearance in his career, took over from Taylor for the rest of the match. [5]
Statistics are correct as of 31 July 2023. [6]
Caught is a method of dismissing a batsman in cricket. A batsman is out caught if the batsman hits the ball, from a legitimate delivery, with the bat, and the ball is caught by the bowler or a fielder before it hits the ground.
David Leslie Bairstow was an English cricketer, who played for Yorkshire and England as a wicket-keeper. He also played football for his hometown club Bradford City. He is the father of England international cricketer Jonny Bairstow.
Jonathan Marc Bairstow is an English cricketer who plays internationally for England in all formats as a right-handed wicket-keeper-batter. In domestic cricket, he has played for Yorkshire County Cricket Club since 2009. He has also played for Sunrisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Joseph Charles Buttler is an English cricketer who is the captain of the England cricket team in limited overs cricket, and previously played for the England Test team. In domestic cricket he represents Lancashire, having previously played for Somerset, and has played in multiple Twenty20 leagues, including for Mumbai Indians and Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League. Buttler is known for his highly innovative and aggressive batting style, especially in limited over cricket. He was part of the England team that won the 2019 Cricket World Cup. Under his captaincy, England won the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup.