Royal Challengers Bengaluru wicket-keeper batter Jitesh Sharma recently named CSK legend MS Dhoni the greatest wicketkeeper in IPL history.
Speaking to Cricbuzz and playing a ‘winner stays on’ format, Jitesh Sharma was asked to name the best wicketkeepers in the league’s history.
The game started with the host asking Jitesh to pick between Wriddhiman Saha and Parthiv Patel.
Sanju Samson an early contender
Jitesh originally picked Saha over Patel. Saha played for 5 different teams between 2008 and 2024 in the IPL. He won the IPL title twice (with CSK in 2011 and GT in 2022). His crowning glory was inarguably his century in the final of the 2014 edition. Saha made an unbeaten 115 while playing for the Punjab Kings against the Kolkata Knight Riders, but his team lost the final.
Former Rajasthan Royals skipper Sanju Samson won over Saha, at least in Jitesh Sharma’s opinion. Samson has already made two centuries while playing for CSK in IPL 2026, but has spent most of his career in RR. In fact, Samson is the highest run-scorer in RR’s history.
Jitesh Sharma also chose Samson over Quinton de Kock, but picked Adam Gilchrist over Samson. Gilchrist was the captain of the Deccan Chargers team that won the IPL in 2009 despite finishing last in 2008. Gilchrist also captained the Punjab Kings towards the end of his career.
Dinesh Karthik is a strong contender in the middle
In the past, Jitesh Sharma has talked about his admiration for Adam Gilchrist, but when faced with the choice, he picked Dinesh Karthik over the Australian southpaw.
Interestingly, Karthik has been RCB’s batting coach since 2025. Jitesh also chose Karthik over other heavyweights like Naman Ojha, Rishabh Pant, Ishan Kishan, and Robin Uthappa.
Karthik too played 17 seasons of the IPL between 2008 and 2024. The Tamil Nadu keeper made a name for himself as a finisher, but only won the IPL trophy once as a player, with the Mumbai Indians in 2013. Karthik also enjoyed a stint as captain of KKR between 2018 and 2020.
MS Dhoni, the ultimate champion
Although Jitesh kept ‘DK’ in the game for the longest time, he eventually picked KL Rahul over him. Rahul was one of the most consistent batters in the IPL, especially between 2018 and 2022.
In those five seasons, Rahul managed to cross the 600-run barrier four times, and fell narrowly short in 2019 with 593 instead. Although Rahul has never been part of an IPL title-winning squad, in IPL 2026, he rose to No. 5 on the all-time IPL run charts.
Rahul has also made 6 IPL centuries in total, including a 152* while playing for Delhi Capitals against Punjab Kings in 2026.
In the end, though, Sharma picked MS Dhoni over KL Rahul as the winner of the game. Despite playing mostly as a finisher, Dhoni is the sixth-highest run-getter of all time in IPL history. His exploits as a finisher are legendary, and so are his five IPL trophies as captain with Chennai Super Kings.
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Jitesh Sharma’s form in IPL 2026 and RCB’s next match
Between all of this, though, Jitesh Sharma’s own batting form in IPL 2026 has been concerning. In 9 matches, he has made just 63 runs. Even though he plays mostly as a finisher, he has a batting average of just 9 and a strike rate of 112.50.
RCB, though, are currently second on the points table in IPL 2026 with 6 wins in 9 matches and the best net run rate in the league. Their next match is on May 7 against a practically eliminated Lucknow Super Giants team. RCB will fancy their chances against a team they have already beaten once before this season.
