Alyssa Healy breaks MS Dhoni's elite wicketkeeping record
Alyssa Healy breaks MS Dhoni’s elite wicketkeeping record
Australia's Alyssa Healy has broken MS Dhoni's record for the most dismissals by a wicketkeeper in the Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is).
Alyssa, who was involved in a stumping and a catch during a T20I against New Zealand on Sunday, now has 92 dismissals as a keeper in the shortest format of the game, one more than Dhoni (91: 57 catches and 34 stumpings), who ended his career earlier this year.
The fact that Alyssa has maintained a huge gap from the next player in the list of most dismissals speaks volumes about her contribution over the years for Australia. The next women's keeper in the list is England's Sarah Taylor with 74 dismissals (23 catches and 51 stumpings). The third, fourth, and fifth place in the list have White Ferns keeper Rachel Priest with 72 dismissals (41 catches and 31 stumpings), West Indies' Merissa Aguilleira with 70 dismissals (36 catches and 34 stumpings), and India's Tania Bhatia with 67 dismissals in just 50 games (23 catches and 44 stumpings).
In the overall list, with men and women wicketkeepers, the top five include only one player from men's cricket – Dhoni, while the rest of the candidates are women. The list is led by Alyssa, who is followed by Dhoni, Sarah, Rachel, and Merissa.
| Wicket keeper | Matches | Dismissals | Catches | Stumpings |
| Alyssa Healy | 114 | 92 | 42 | 50 |
| MS Dhoni | 98 | 91 | 54 | 37 |
| Sarah Taylor | 90 | 74 | 23 | 51 |
| Rachael Priest | 75 | 72 | 41 | 31 |
| Merissa Aguilleira | 95 | 70 | 36 | 34 |
Meg Lanning's Aussies defeated New Zealand in the first T20I by 17 runs and the home side sealed the three-match T20I series by winning the second match by eight wickets on Sunday. Both the matches were played at Allan Border Field in Brisbane.
Batting first on Sunday, the White Ferns were bowled out for 128 in 19.2 overs, courtesy of a collective effort from Australia's bowling attack. Delissa Kimmince and Georgia Wareham were the picks of the bowlers, having picked three scalps each. The other wickets were picked by Sophie Molineux and Nicola Carey.
During the chase, Alyssa performed well with the bat too, scored a quick-fire 17-ball 33 as the Southern Stars reached 50 inside five overs. In the end, Australian captain Lanning and Rachel Haynes remained unbeaten on 32-ball 26 and 31-ball 40 respectively to help Australia win with eight wickets and 20 balls to spare.
After the third T20I between Australia and New Zealand, which is scheduled on Wednesday, the two sides will face off for a three-match One-Day International (ODI) series.