With its origins dating all the way back to the 16th century, cricket has evolved greatly over the years.
From changes in its laws to adopting entirely new formats, the game has always been in a constant state of flux. While cricket’s lawmakers and custodians have played their part in evolving the sport with time, there have also been several players along the way who have created their own impact.
These players have helped change the manner in which the game is approached and their legacy is permanently etched in stone. Whether it be introducing a completely new shot with the bat or bringing a fundamental shift in the game, these players are cricket’s greatest innovators.
There is the great Sir Viv Richards who stood out among his contemporaries in the 1980s with his swagger and brilliance in playing ‘across the line’. Then there is Pakistan spin ace Saqlain Mushtaq who gave off-spinners a new dimension with his mastery of the ‘doosra‘.
Who can forget the outrageous genius of Kevin Pietersen and his ‘Switch Hit’. Or the manner in which Sanath Jayasuriya completely revolutionised ODI cricket with his 1996 World Cup exploits. Even the manner in which Zimbabwe legend Andy Flower tormented spinners with his reverse sweep ignited a revolution.
How Sarfraz Nawaz pioneered the art of reverse swing before passing on the knowledge to Pakistan’s next generation of pacers was another game-changing innovation in the sport.
Among these luminaries of cricket, Australia’s Adam Gilchrist deserves a special mention for redefining the role of a wicketkeeper.
Adam Gilchrist
With more than 16,000 international runs to his name and 905 dismissals, Adam Gilchrist is one of the greatest cricketers to don the Australia jersey.
In an illustrious international career spanning 12 years, Gilchrist was a crucial component in an all-conquering Australian side whose conquests included winning three straight ICC World Cup titles.
Having made his ODI debut for Australia in 1996 as a 25-year-old, Gilchrist had to wait another three years before he earned his first Test cap against Pakistan in 1999.
The long wait for a Test call-up was due to the fact that the southpaw had Ian Healy ahead of him in the wicketkeeping pecking order. Having warmed the bench for a long period, Gilchrist wasted no time in stamping his authority on the Test arena with a smashing 81 in Brisbane.
Despite what was a belated debut, the New South Wales man still went on to make 96 Test appearances for Australia while amassing 5,570 runs in the process.
An aggressive batsman by nature, Gilchrist plundered his way to 17 and 16 tons respectively in the Test and ODI formats. Opening the innings in ODIs while often coming in at No7 in Tests, Gilchrist made batting look easy with his swashbuckling and carefree style.
In Tests, he could come in at 150-5 or 350-5, but he would deliver the goods more often than not with his counter-attacking approach. The first batsman in history to slam a century of sixes, Gilchrist could change the complexion of the game in a matter of a session.
If coming in after an early collapse, he could put the opposition on the back-foot all of a sudden with a flurry of boundaries. And if he walked in after the formidable Australia top-order had done a good job already, then there would only be further agony in store for the tired bowlers and fielders.
A strike-rate of 81.95 over 137 Test innings was testament to Gilchrist’s belligerence as a batsman who stood out among his peers. In ODIs, he ended his career with 9,619 runs scored at a staggering strike-rate of 96.94.
Be it as a man for the crisis or one who grinds down wary bowling attacks, Gilchrist was a vital cog of the Australian side which steamrolled every opposition before them.
A new definition for wicketkeeper-batsman
Gilchrist’s legacy on the sport is clearly distinguishable, with the Australian giving a new meaning to the term ‘wicketkeeper-batsman’. Before he arrived on the scene, the ability with the gloves was considered the supreme criteria for any wicketkeeper.
Usually batting at the No7 or 8 positions in the order, runs by wicketkeepers were considered to be a bonus. While there were a rare few such as Andy Flower and Alec Stewart who could do a decent job with the bat, a batting average of around 20-25 was considered to be more than decent for a wicketkeeper.
As Gilchrist’s predecessor in the Australian team, Ian Healy was widely considered the finest wicketkeeper of his generation. However, his batting was fairly ordinary with averages of 27 and 21 respectively in Test and ODI formats.
During Gilchrist’s remarkable success with the bat, the role of wicketkeeper batsmen changed forever. While he was no slouch behind the stumps as shown by his 905 international dismissals, Gilchrist wicketkeeping abilities wasn’t really a patch on that of Healy. However, his prolific batting returns saw him pale Healy’s career by a fair distance.
“Not just me, he influenced selectors as well to look at wicketkeeping from a different perspective completely – to understand that a wicketkeeper has to be highly skilled, but at the same time, if he can’t contribute with the bat, then picking him becomes quite difficult,” Sri Lanka wicketkeeping legend Kumar Sangakkara had told ESPNcricinfo about Gilchrist’s impact on the sport.
“So, he challenged wicketkeepers to improve their batting, to understand how to bat with the tail.”
Gilchrist’s game-changing impact on the sport means that batting ability is now equally important to the glove work for any wicketkeeper coming into the game. Almost every wicketkeeper at the highest level is a genuine batsman in his own right.
In several cases, teams are even willing to compensate wicketkeeping abilities to gain the luxury of extra batting firepower. Rahul Dravid and Younis Khan are two legendary batsmen in their own right, yet both stalwarts have kept wickets for their respective countries at some point in their careers.
Now, wicketkeepers with batting ability are in abundance in international cricket. The likes of MS Dhoni, Jos Buttler, Jonny Bairstow, Quinton de Kock and Mushfiqur Rahim are just some examples of wicketkeepers who are genuinely excellent batsmen. Lately, India has resorted to KL Rahul being given the wicketkeeping duties in order to bolster their limited-overs batting firepower.
New Zealand have Tom Latham and BJ Watling, while Australia have Alex Carey and Tim Paine. It is near impossible now, for any wicketkeeper coming into the game, to rely solely on their keeping abilities. Being an all-rounder has become a must for every player in the role, and this gigantic shift is solely down to Gilchrist’s stellar exploits for Australia.
