Best Asian wicket keeper ever?

[ares1000]

Forget batting, strictly as a glove man. Who do you think is the best test wicket keeper to come out of Asia?

Some possibilities that come to mind from more modern vintage are:

Faroukh Engineer
Wasim Bari

Now for an AT X1 I would pick Sangakkara for his classy batting even whilst keeping [still averages over 40!], but strictly as a wkt keeper I am open to be convinced.

[hur rizvi]

wasim bari

[ares1000]

Lulz.

Do you guys recall Kaluwitharana (sp), he was pretty tidy.

[Sledger]

Sangakkara is the best I've seen. Was a top keeper.

[Zaz]

Latif

[Paradox]

.. Prasanna Jayawardene, anyone?

[ShehryarK]

Kirmani
Latif
Engineer
Bari

In any order, but probably in the order above - at least imho



PS: And no, I have no explanation for why all four are Muslim.

Maybe some genius can do a PhD thesis on this too, to add to the growing piles of bakwaas on "why Indians don't produce phaast bowlers".

[imshally81]

Rashid latif.. from milez.....
ask waseem & waqar :D

[Sledger]

PS: And no, I have no explanation for why all four are Muslim.

It surely has to boil down to beef consumption (and cow's milk, as much as possible).


I can't believe I forgot about Latif lol.

[amarali]

Rashid Lateef.......

[ares1000]

It surely has to boil down to beef consumption (and cow's milk, as much as possible).


I can't believe I forgot about Latif lol.

Engineer is not a muslim. He is a parsi.

[Awesome Anjum]

Kirmani
Latif
Engineer
Bari

In any order, but probably in the order above - at least imho



PS: And no, I have no explanation for why all four are Muslim.

Maybe some genius can do a PhD thesis on this too, to add to the growing piles of bakwaas on "why Indians don't produce phaast bowlers".
Engineer is not Muslim, he is a Parsee.

[namak]

Kirmani
Latif
Engineer
Bari

In any order, but probably in the order above - at least imho



PS: And no, I have no explanation for why all four are Muslim.



Farokh Engineer is Parsi. Google it.

[IgnitedMind]

Strictly as a Keeper, I think Nayan Mongia was as good as anybody. Rarely did I see him drop catches.and his keeping to Anil Kumble was pure class.

Sangakkara, Kaluwitharana,Latif are the others I think are very good with the gloves as well..

[ares1000]

What of Kiran More?

[ShehryarK]

Engineer is not a muslim. He is a parsi.

Engineer is not Muslim, he is a Parsee.

Farokh Engineer is Parsi. Google it.
Thanks for the correction guys :19:

Seems a great character too - garrulous, know-it-all but without appearing condescending or bitter.

[MMHS]

Latif, followed by Kiri.

[freelance_cricketer]

Heard good things about Farookh Engineer, how good was he :13:

[saeedhk]

Sanga without a doubt..

[MMHS]

Heard good things about Farookh Engineer, how good was he :13:


I heard that, he was the second Gillyisque like keeper (First probably was Springbok keeper Denis Lindsey, played last Test at 29 in '69-'70, had 3 centuries in 19 Tests), could have made the XI simply as a specialist bat. But not sure about his keeping, haven't ever seen him. As a specialist keeper, he played in an era when there were 4/5 outstanding specialist keepers, so his keeping might be under valued. In '71-'72, he was the first choice keeper & opened for the World XI against Aus.

Though off the track, this is surprising, there is less than 1% Parsy community in India, but they have produced some of the best Indian cricketers in olden days. Till first half of last century, there were 3 major first class teams in Bombay, the Hindus, the Persis & the Europeans.

[Afridi_Fan]

Salim Yousaf.

[W63L35]

Wasim Bari

Saleem Yousuf

..

day light

...

somebody else.

[ares1000]

Wasim Bari was a nimble man.

[cricmylife]

Thats easy :kami

[pakcricketfan]

Never saw Bari.
Never saw Salim Yousuf.
Never saw Kirmani.
Never saw Engineer.
.
.
.
.
So, yes.. Rashid bhai is the best wicketkeeper I've ever seen.

Why did we even have a first slip fielder when he was keeping!?

[Cover Drive]

Poll Added.

[cricmylife]

ivote: Rashid Latif...He is the only one I have watched keeping (on youtube :) )

[s2k]

Kirmani.....he was safe as a house and fast as lightning.

[ShehryarK]

Never saw Bari.
Never saw Salim Yousuf.
Never saw Kirmani.
Never saw Engineer.
.
.
.
.
So, yes.. Rashid bhai is the best wicketkeeper I've ever seen.

Why did we even have a first slip fielder when he was keeping!?
Eh?

I'm a HUGE fan of Saleem Yousuf but he was nowhere near as good as the others. He wasn't a natural keeper.

Imran, who loved Yousuf more than most and was the reason Yousuf got selected, himself acknowledges than Yousuf wasn't a natural gloveman the way even Anil Dalpat and some others were.

However, Imran always preferred Yousuf because the guy was a Fighter with the bat and even in the field - not a 'great' batsman, but he exemplified Imran's own indomitable will to win and the never say attitude.

But as this thread is about pure keeping ability, guys like Yousuf and Moin don't come near Latif and Bari!

[abdulhafeez306]

I voted for Bari based on what I've heard but the best keeper I've seen is definitely Rashid Latif from Asia.

Also there are two Wasim Bari's in the poll.

[MVP26]

The best I have seen is Rashid Latif

[pakcricketfan]

Eh?

I'm a HUGE fan of Saleem Yousuf but he was nowhere near as good as the others. He wasn't a natural keeper.

Imran, who loved Yousuf more than most and was the reason Yousuf got selected, himself acknowledges than Yousuf wasn't a natural gloveman the way even Anil Dalpat and some others were.

However, Imran always preferred Yousuf because the guy was a Fighter with the bat and even in the field - not a 'great' batsman, but he exemplified Imran's own indomitable will to win and the never say attitude.

But as this thread is about pure keeping ability, guys like Yousuf and Moin don't come near Latif and Bari!

Someone has mentioned Saleem Yousuf in this thread. Khair.. How would I know? I never watched him play :(

That's a nice piece of info, btw. :)

And yes, since I've seen both Moin and Rashid - I do know that Moin doesn't even come close to Rashid Latif in terms of wicket-keeping abilities.

[Invictus]

Latif hands down from the ones that I have seen. Never saw Bari or Engineer waghira so don't know. But Latif made it look easy. Good keepers and good slip fielders look nimble and usually look slow and graceful in their movements.
Latif never looked like he was making an effort, tremendous keeper.

[mastermind_quad]

Syed Kirmani.

[Justcrazy]

Latif. He was spectacular. Others were also good but he had the edge.

[octavian]

Based on pure wicketkeeping abilities The best I've seen is Rashid Latif.

Never saw Kirmani or Bari or Engineer.

[DHONI183]

Since I never saw the other ones from the 1970s or 1980s, I would go for Rashid Latif.

[Sohaib]

Poll Added.

There are two Wasim Bari? One listed on option number 2 while the other one on number 5. :p

[AFM]

Sangakarra.

[AFM]

Haha, but statistically, it's :kami

http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/con...ds/283791.html

Of all the wicket-keepers in Test history who have been part of at least 50 dismissals, Courtney Browne leads the table with about 2.2 dismissals per innings. Followed by Gilchrist, who has 2.18, and then Akmal, who has 2.08.

Hahahaha.

[W63L35]

I am confused!

[AFM]

I've just proved it's :kami

Numbers don't lie.

/thread

Haha, but seriously, it's a testament to our bowlers that even after so many dropped catches and missed stumpings, he's still 3rd on the list of 'most dismissals per innings' of all time.

[kamz]

Wasim bari all the way for me

[Shahid20Ten]

K Sangakara only

[Watsupdoc]

Of the people I have seen and have memory of probably Sangakarra.

[Blitz]

Sangakara shouldn't be considered if its only WKs, and not batsmen.


As a pure WK, Bari is probably the best.


I've only ever heard about him being untouchable as a keeper alone.

[fuzz_174]

from who i saw

Rashid Latif was the best on that list..

Prasanna Jayawardene isnt too bad either

[KingKhanWC]

:facepalm: ppers thinking latif was better than Bari.

[AZ]

Wasim Bari for sure. :bari

[w8in_4_0402]

:kami

[Liverpool_Faizan]

Never seen the man play but my dad says its Wasim Bari

[emclub]

why is moin bhai not in the poll?

blasphemy


:moin

[MMHS]

Bari & Kiri was very good indeed, but I am not sure about their fitness level. I don't think Bari would have kept at the same level like Latif against the curling balls of 2 Ws & the thunder bolts of Sohaib & Waquar. & Latif kept really well against Mushi & Saqui's Dushra. Kiri never kept against real quick bowlers, but against spinners, he was untouchable, though, I don't think in those days Indian Off-spinners could turn the ball opposite way with same action.

I have seen some clippings of Kiri in '83 WC & Bari in WSC of '83, & have seen Latif live a lot. At their peak, Latif was as good as anyone, particularly the way he took some one-handed inside edges of Waquar's late in-swingers, diving opposite to natural movement was awesome. I don't think any keeper from subcontinent in 60s or 70s were that nimble & elastic.

[dinakar]

If Kaluwitharana in the list (short list itself is honorary!), Mongia too deserve a mention. He was excellent in the mid 90s. That time India playing 3 regular spinners and part-timers and Mongia did well. A keeper's skill will be more tested when standing up to the stumps. Kiran More could be too in the list if not had to play musical chair with Chandrakanth Pandit.

Having said that, I don't know the best as I haven't seen the Kirmani, Bari and Engineer. Had seen a few matches of Salim Yousuf. I remember him getting hit on the nose by Abdul Qadir.

[Muhammad Waleed]

Rashid Latif, even our neighbors admire him

[bluffmasterv2]

Sangakarra should be there on his wicket keeping abilities alone, what has he ever done wrong behind the stumps :S

[AZ]

^ he quit standing there?

[Robert]

[B]
And no, I have no explanation for why all four are Muslim.


Even Matt Prior has grown a beard!

[ares1000]

Lolz.

What do you lads make of MSD?

Bari [even from footage] is excellent. Kalu was swift too. But I would obviously pick KS all considered.