Indian Wicket-Keepers with Most Test Centuries: Glovemen Records

Indian Test cricket has produced several outstanding wicket-keepers, but the role has changed dramatically over the decades. Earlier generations were often judged primarily on their work behind the stumps. Modern teams expect much more: a Test wicket-keeper must also contribute meaningful runs, handle pressure with the lower order and sometimes change a match with aggressive batting.

India’s history reflects that evolution. Budhi Kunderan and Farokh Engineer showed in the 1960s that an Indian keeper could score major Test hundreds. Syed Kirmani later combined dependable keeping with useful lower-order batting. MS Dhoni raised expectations significantly by scoring six Test centuries and nearly 5,000 runs, while Rishabh Pant has taken attacking wicket-keeper batting to another level.

Pant now holds the Indian record for the most Test centuries by a wicket-keeper, with eight hundreds through 2026. He moved past Dhoni’s six after scoring twin centuries against England at Headingley in 2025. Dhruv Jurel has also emerged as another century-making keeper, giving India considerable batting depth in the position.

Indian Wicket-Keepers with Most Test Centuries

The table below ranks the leading Indian wicket-keepers by Test centuries. Where players are level on hundreds, career runs are used to order them.

Pant’s rise to the top is particularly impressive because he reached eight centuries in far fewer matches than Dhoni played during his Test career. Dhoni remains India’s highest run-scorer among specialist Test wicket-keepers, while Pant is closing the gap rapidly.

Top Five Indian Wicket-Keepers by Test Centuries

1. Rishabh Pant – 8 Test Centuries

Rishabh Pant has redefined what India can expect from a wicket-keeper in Test cricket.

The left-hander combines aggressive strokeplay with an ability to produce important innings in difficult overseas conditions. Through 2026, he has scored eight Test centuries and more than 3,700 runs, making him India’s leading century-maker among wicket-keepers.

Pant’s first Test century came against England at The Oval in 2018, when he scored 114. Although India lost the match, the innings immediately showed his potential. He followed that with an unbeaten 159 against Australia at Sydney in early 2019, becoming the first Indian wicket-keeper to score a Test century in Australia.

He later added hundreds against England, South Africa and other major opponents.

One of Pant’s finest periods came during India’s 2025 tour of England. In the opening Test at Headingley, he scored 134 in the first innings and 118 in the second. He became only the second wicket-keeper in Test history, after Andy Flower, to score centuries in both innings of the same Test.

Those two hundreds took Pant’s career total to eight and moved him clear of Dhoni’s Indian wicket-keeping record of six.

Pant’s value comes from more than the number of centuries. His rapid scoring can change the direction of a Test in one session. When bowlers begin to dominate, he often responds by attacking rather than simply defending.

2. MS Dhoni – 6 Test Centuries

MS Dhoni held India’s record for most Test hundreds by a wicket-keeper until Pant overtook him.

Dhoni played 90 Tests between 2005 and 2014, scoring 4,876 runs at an average of 38.09. He made six centuries and 33 fifties, finishing his Test career as India’s most prolific specialist wicket-keeper with the bat.

His first Test hundred came against Pakistan at Faisalabad in 2006. India were responding to Pakistan’s huge first-innings total when Dhoni launched a powerful counterattack, scoring 148 from only 153 balls.

That innings established the style that would define much of his career. Dhoni was not a conventional Test technician, but his strength, calmness and ability to attack bowlers made him extremely effective.

His highest Test score came against Australia in Chennai in 2013. Dhoni smashed 224 from 265 balls, becoming the first Indian wicket-keeper to score a Test double-century.

The innings remains one of the greatest ever played by an Indian keeper. It helped India seize control of the match and eventually complete an eight-wicket victory.

Dhoni also captained India to the No. 1 Test ranking and provided stability behind the stumps during a period in which the team achieved major success at home and overseas.

3. Wriddhiman Saha – 3 Test Centuries

Wriddhiman Saha followed Dhoni as India’s regular Test wicket-keeper and developed into a dependable lower-order batter.

Saha played 40 Tests and scored 1,353 runs, including three centuries and six fifties. His batting numbers were not as large as Dhoni’s or Pant’s, but many of his runs came from difficult positions.

His maiden Test century arrived against West Indies at St Lucia in 2016. India had lost important wickets before Saha and Ravichandran Ashwin rebuilt the innings. Saha scored 104 and shared a crucial partnership with Ashwin as India recovered to 353.

He added another hundred against Bangladesh in Hyderabad in 2017, making an unbeaten 106.

Saha’s third century came against Australia at Ranchi later that year. His 117 was arguably his finest Test innings. India were under pressure when he joined Cheteshwar Pujara, but the pair built a huge partnership that allowed the hosts to take control.

While Saha was often praised most strongly for his pure wicket-keeping skills, his three centuries proved he could also make decisive contributions with the bat.

4. Syed Kirmani – 2 Test Centuries

Syed Kirmani was one of India’s finest traditional wicket-keepers and served the team for more than a decade.

He played 88 Tests between 1976 and 1986, scoring 2,759 runs with two centuries and 12 fifties. His highest Test score was 102.

Kirmani’s first Test hundred came against Australia in Mumbai in 1979. Batting in the lower order, he made an unbeaten 101 and helped India build a commanding total.

He later scored 102 against England in Mumbai in 1981.

Kirmani was not selected primarily for his batting. His clean work behind the stumps remained his greatest strength, particularly when standing up to India’s strong spin attack. However, his ability to contribute useful runs gave India added security in the lower order.

He finished his Test career with 198 dismissals, including 160 catches and 38 stumpings.

5. Farokh Engineer – 2 Test Centuries

Farokh Engineer was one of India’s earliest genuinely attacking wicket-keeper-batters.

He represented India in 46 Tests between 1961 and 1975 and scored 2,611 runs at an average above 31. His record included two centuries and 16 fifties.

Engineer played with an aggressive style that was unusual for wicket-keepers of his era. He was comfortable taking on fast bowling and could score quickly when conditions allowed.

His highest Test score was 121 against England in Mumbai in 1973. His other century also came at home.

Engineer’s importance went beyond his two hundreds. Sixteen Test fifties show how regularly he contributed with the bat. For a wicket-keeper operating in the 1960s and early 1970s, more than 2,600 Test runs represented a significant achievement.

His success helped establish the idea that India’s keeper could be much more than a specialist gloveman.

Other Indian Wicket-Keepers with Multiple Test Hundreds

Budhi Kunderan was an important early figure in India’s wicket-keeping history. He played only 18 Tests but scored 981 runs, including two centuries.

His greatest innings was 192 against England in Chennai in 1964. Kunderan attacked the bowling aggressively and came close to becoming the first Indian wicket-keeper to score a Test double-century.

Dhruv Jurel is the newest addition to India’s group of multiple-century keepers. By August 2026, he had scored 651 runs in 12 Tests with two hundreds.

His maiden century came against West Indies in Ahmedabad in 2025, when he scored 125. Jurel added his second Test hundred against Sri Lanka in Colombo in August 2026, strengthening his claim as another high-quality wicket-keeper-batter for India.

Famous Centuries by Indian Wicket-Keepers

Indian wicket-keepers have produced several centuries that stand out for either their quality or match situation.

Dhoni’s 224 against Australia in Chennai remains the highest Test score by an Indian wicket-keeper. Australia had made 380, but Dhoni’s counterattacking double-century transformed the match and helped India build a huge first-innings lead.

Pant’s unbeaten 159 in Sydney in 2019 was historic because no Indian wicket-keeper had previously scored a Test century in Australia.

His 89 not out at Brisbane in 2021 was not a century, but it remains one of the most important wicket-keeper innings in Indian Test history. Pant guided India through a difficult final-day chase as they won at the Gabba and completed a famous 2-1 series victory.

Pant’s twin hundreds of 134 and 118 at Headingley in 2025 created another major record. They made him the first Indian wicket-keeper to score two hundreds in the same Test and lifted him past Dhoni for the most Test centuries by an Indian keeper.

Saha’s 117 against Australia at Ranchi in 2017 also deserves recognition. His partnership with Pujara turned a difficult position into a strong one and showed the value of lower-order resistance.

MS Dhoni’s Test Hundreds

Dhoni’s six Test centuries came during a career in which he constantly balanced three major responsibilities: wicket-keeping, batting and captaincy.

His six hundreds were:

The 224 stands clearly above the rest statistically, but his first century at Faisalabad may have been equally important for his development.

Dhoni entered international cricket with a reputation as an aggressive white-ball player. Scoring 148 in Pakistan demonstrated that his attacking approach could also succeed in Test cricket.

His hundreds also came against varied bowling attacks. Australia, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and West Indies all experienced Dhoni’s ability to turn lower-middle-order positions into substantial totals.

How Wicket-Keeper Batting Changed for India

For much of Test cricket’s early history, wicket-keeping skill came first. Runs were useful, but teams often accepted modest batting returns if the keeper rarely missed chances.

That expectation has changed.

Modern Test sides increasingly want seven or eight players capable of making meaningful runs. A wicket-keeper who averages well with the bat can allow a team to select an extra bowler without weakening the lineup.

India’s progression illustrates this clearly.

Kunderan and Engineer showed that keepers could play major innings. Kirmani supplied dependable lower-order runs while maintaining high standards behind the stumps. Dhoni then became a genuine match-winning batter, while Pant has developed the role into an aggressive middle-order weapon.

Pant’s scoring rate is particularly important. He can turn 250/5 into 350/6 in a short period, changing both the scoreboard and the amount of time left in a Test.

Jurel’s emergence has continued the trend. His early Test hundreds indicate that India now expect reserve wicket-keepers to contribute heavily with the bat as well.

Impact of Keeper-Batters in Test Cricket

A strong wicket-keeper-batter changes the balance of an entire Test XI.

If the keeper can regularly score centuries or fifties, the team effectively gains an extra specialist batter without sacrificing a bowling position. That becomes especially valuable overseas, where teams may want five genuine bowling options.

Keeper-batters also frequently enter during unstable situations. A score of 200/5 can become 400 if the keeper builds a partnership with the lower middle order. The same position can turn into 250 all out if the wicket-keeper offers little batting resistance.

India have benefited from exactly this kind of depth.

Dhoni repeatedly rescued innings and accelerated with the tail. Saha formed important partnerships when the top order struggled. Pant has gone further by attacking world-class bowling and producing centuries in Australia, England, South Africa and India.

The position is no longer simply about catches and stumpings. For modern India, Test wicket-keeping has become a genuine all-round batting role, and the century records of Pant and Dhoni show how dramatically expectations have changed.

FAQs

Which Indian wicket-keeper has scored the most Test centuries?

Rishabh Pant holds the record with eight Test centuries through 2026. He moved ahead of MS Dhoni, who scored six.

How many Test centuries did MS Dhoni score?

MS Dhoni scored six Test centuries in 90 matches. His highest score was 224 against Australia in Chennai in 2013.

What is Rishabh Pant’s highest Test score?

Pant’s highest Test score is 159 not out against Australia at Sydney in 2019.

Which Indian wicket-keeper scored the first Test double-century?

MS Dhoni became the first Indian wicket-keeper to score a Test double-century when he made 224 against Australia in Chennai in 2013.

How many Test centuries did Wriddhiman Saha score?

Wriddhiman Saha scored three Test centuries in 40 matches. His highest score was 117 against Australia in Ranchi.

Has Dhruv Jurel scored a Test century?

Yes. Dhruv Jurel had scored two Test centuries through August 2026, including 125 against West Indies and 115 against Sri Lanka.