The Board of Control for Cricket is likely to ban Boria Majumdar for 2 years post the scandal with Wriddhiman Saha. A 3-member BCCI committee investigated the case and found the cricket journalist found guilty of threatening Indian cricketer Wriddhiman Saha. Boria Majumdar can now neither enter any stadiums in India nor meet the players.

Read also: IPL 2022 News: Rishabh Pant, Shardul Thakur, and Pravin Amre fined for breaching the IPL Code Of Conduct

A top BCCI official said to The Sunday Express on condition of anonymity, "We will be informing all state units of the Indian cricket board to not allow him inside stadiums. He won't be given media accreditation for home matches and we will also be writing to ICC to blacklist him. Players will be asked not to engage with him."

This incident started on 19 February when Saha shared a screenshot of the intimidating messages on social media. He did not mention any name; rather said he received it from a 'renowned journalist.' The message on the screenshot read, "You did not call. Never again will I interview you. I don't take insults kindly. And I will remember this." Saha posted it with a caption, "After all of my contributions to Indian cricket… this is what I face from a so-called 'Respected' journalist! This is where journalism has gone."

The intensity of IPL playoffs brings out extraordinary performances. Several players have set the bar high with their fearless batting skills and bagging those victories for the teams.

With the IPL 2025 playoffs approaching, it is the best time to examine the highest individual scores by players in the IPL playoffs.

Check out the full list of the highest individual scores by players in the IPL playoffs.

1. Shubham Gill (129 runs) | GT

Shubham Gill shattered all the big batting records of IPL playoffs with his unbelievable knock of 129 runs off 60 balls against Mumbai Indians in IPL 2023 Qualifier 2.

His performance as an opening batsman took Gujarat Titans to a huge total of 233 runs, which they defended comfortably and booked their final berth.

This groundbreaking knock tops the chart for the highest individual scores by players in IPL playoffs.

Read Also: Most IPL Finals: Teams with most final appearances in IPL history

2. Virender Sehwag (122 runs) | PBKS

Virender Sehwag's 122 runs off 58 balls against CSK was the long-standing record of the highest individual score in playoffs for 9 years.

This sensational knock in Qualifier 2 helped Punjab Kings reach the IPL final for the first time.

3. Shane Watson (117* runs) | CSK

The Australian legend, Shane Watson, holds the third position with his 117* runs from 57 balls against SRH in the IPL 2018 Final.

His phenomenal performance led the Chennai Super Kings to their third IPL victory.

Watson smashed 11 fours and 8 sixes, with a strike rate above 200.

Read Also: Safest hands: Most catches in IPL history

4. Wriddhiman Saha (115* runs) | PBKS

An incredible season for the boy of Bengal, Wriddhiman Saha, who dominated till the very end against KKR in the IPL 2014 Final. He scored an unbeaten 115 runs from just 55 balls and helped PBKS reach a defendable total. Saha's ton was the first ton ever scored in an IPL final.

Even though Kolkata Knight Riders pulled off a brilliant victory in that match, Saha's performance won the hearts of the fans!

5. Murali Vijay (113 runs) | CSK

Murali Vijay single-handedly took CSK to a humongous total in the Qualifier 2 of IPL 2012. His remarkable contribution of 113 runs from 58 balls made things easier for their team.

With this victory against Delhi Capitals, CSK headed towards the Final and Murali Vijay was rewarded player of the match.

Read Also: Most Sixes in an innings by an Indian in IPL

6. Rajat Patidar (112*) | RCB

Rajat Patidar has proven to be one of the impactful figures for Royal Challengers Bengaluru ever since his debut in 2021. He left a stellar lasting impression with his knock of 112* runs from 54 balls against LSG in IPL 2022 Eliminator.

His contribution was extremely crucial for the team as their batting line-up collapsed early in the first innings. However, RCB successfully defeated LSG to move ahead in the tournament, with credit to Patidar.

Former CSK captain MS Dhoni has entered history books again with a rare achievement as wicketkeeper. He completed 200 dismissals as a keeper in IPL, a feat that places him on top of the list of most dismissals in IPL history . He reached this historic number during CSK’s match against LSG in IPL 2025. Dhoni’s 200th dismissal came when he stumped Ayush Badoni, showing once again why he’s still one of the best, even at the age of 43. 

Also Read: Most Fifties in T20 Cricket

Let's take a look at the wicketkeepers with most dismissals in IPL history.

Most Dismissals in IPL

5. Wriddhiman Saha | 118

Wriddhiman Saha is known for his clean glovework and quick reflexes. While he may not be as loud or flashy as some other players, his wicketkeeping skills are among the finest in IPL history. He holds the fifth position in this list. Wriddhiman owns 118 dismissals in IPL. He affected 113 dismissals with the wicket-keeping gloves.

4. Robin Uthappa | 124

Robin Uthappa was a utility player who often switched between being a specialist batsman and wicketkeeper. His flexibility across multiple roles has been one of his major strengths. He ranks fourth in the list of most dismissals in IPL history. Uthappa owns 124 dismissals in IPL. He affected 90 dismissals with the wicket-keeping gloves.

3. AB de Villiers | 126

AB de Villiers has the most fielding dismissals by an overseas player in the IPL. He trails Karthik with 126 dismissals. As a wicket-keeper, de Villiers registered 36 dismissals, a tally that has 28 catches and eight stumpings.

De Villiers, who was once the heartbeat of Royal Challengers Bengaluru, racked up 5,162 runs at a strike-rate of over 150 in the IPL.

2. Dinesh Karthik | 182

Dinesh Karthik, who represented a host of franchises in the IPL, follows Dhoni on this elite list. He owns 182 such dismissals.

In an IPL career that spanned 16 years, Karthik affected 174 dismissals with the wicket-keeping gloves. His tally includes 137 catches and 37 stumpings. In 2024, Karthik retired with 4,842 runs in the cash-rich league.

Also Read: Most Wickets in 1st Over of IPL

1. MS Dhoni | 200

In his 271st IPL appearance, Dhoni breached the 200-dismissal mark by successfully completing his counterpart Rishabh Pant’s catch in the final over as LSG packed their innings on 166/7. The seasoned wicketkeeper batter boasts 201 dismissals, consisting of 155 catches and 46 stumpings.

Dhoni is now the only player to have registered 200 fielding dismissals in the IPL. His path to this incredible milestone features 197 dismissals as a wicket-keeper. He owns 151 catches and 46 stumpings with the gloves.

Bengal men's cricket team last won a trophy in 2012, when they lifted the Vijay Hazare Trophy, beating the mighty Mumbai team at Feroz Shah Kotla stadium in Delhi. 13 years have passed since then and the Bengal men's cricket team's dream for another trophy got prolonged every season.

Today, in this exclusive article on Bengal cricket, we will check out where those members of that Champion team are now. 

Let me inform you first, despite being the Champions only twice in the Ranji Trophy and once in Vijay Hazare Trophy, Bengal have been one of the strongest teams in Indian domestic circuit for years. The team from Eastern India have been runners-up in Ranji Trophy for a record 13 times.

Meantime, in Vijay Hazare Trophy, they finished second 4 times.

Without further delay, let's get to know the "playing eleven" from that Champion Bengal team.

Bengal Men's Cricket team's journey in the 2011-12 Vijay Hazare Season

Bengal won four out of four games in the inter-zone group matches and finished as the zone champions with 19 points to reach the knockouts. Assam with 12 points qualified alongside them from the east zone.

In the first quarter-final, Bengal defeated a strong Madhya Pradesh by 15 runs to reach the semi-finals. Ashok Dinda took 5/54 and was named the player of the match. Anustup Majumdar scored 55 to help Bengal score 230 in the first inning. 

In the semi-final, Wriddhiman Saha was the hero for Bengal as his unbeaten 53 from 71 balls helped them chase Punjab's 206-run target. Sourav Sarkar and Arnab Nandi were the pick of the bowlers for Bengal with two wickets a piece. Mohammed Shami added a valuable 22 from 7 balls at the back of the innings for Bengal to get them over the line.

The Mega Final: Mumbai vs Bengal

The mega final saw literally a one-man show from current Bengal head coach Laxmi Ratan Shukla. The all-rounder first took 4 wickets while giving away only 38 runs in the first inning against a star-studded batting lineup comprising Wasim Jaffer, Ajinkya Rahane, Suryakumar Yadav, Abhishek Nayar and Aditya Tare.

Mohammed Shami also picked up two wickets in the first inning. While chasing Mumbai's 249, Bengal lost Subhomoy Das in the first over. Mumbai captain Ajit Ajarkar trapped him in front of the wicket.

Shreevats Goswami (42 from 73) and Sourav Ganguly (38 from 53) tried to put a partnership but a few quick wickets after the departure of Ganguly pushed Bengal to trouble at 145/4 in 32.2 overs. 

But, then it was the partnership between Anustup Majumdar (50* from 45 balls) and Laxmi Ratan Shukla (106* from 90 balls) that helped Bengal chase down the total with 6 wickets in hands and 23 balls remaining.

Laxmi Ratan Shukla was the player of the final while Wriddhiman Saha was the top scorer of the tournament with 395 runs at an average of 98.75. 

Read Also | Bengal Cricket: 7 U-19 cricketers from Bengal who can play for India in future

Where are those Champion players now?

Shreevats Goswami (211 runs in VHT 2011-12)

One of the most successful white-ball openers for Bengal, Shreevats Goswami was the first-ever "Emerging Player of the IPL". His white ball dominance and stroke-making ability helped him play 31 matches in the IPL.

Goswami recently announced his retirement and played in the Legends Cricket League and Big Cricket League. He is currently doing commentary for various platforms.

Subhomoy Das

The flamboyant opener, who featured in the Indian Cricket League, is currently a coach and a selector. He was the Chief Selector of Bengal's Men's Cricket team earlier and was appointed as the head coach of the Adamas Howrah Warriors in the Bengal Pro T20 League too.

Sourav Ganguly (Captain)

Probably one of the greatest Indian captains, Sourav Ganguly retired from all forms of cricket in 2012. Later, he joined the Cricket Association of Bengal as the President. He then went on to head the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) as well.

Ganguly is currently associated with many associations and is the Director of Cricket at JSW Sports. Along with that, Ganguly also did commentary in between these years which fans loved as well. 

Laxmi Ratan Shukla (291 runs and 11 wickets)

Laxmi Ratan Shukla is regarded as one of the greatest all-rounders of Bengal cricket. His ability to turn up in the most demanding situations for his team is a skill Bengal is still trying to replace. 

Shukla won the Indian Premier League with Kolkata Knight Riders. Then he served as the Minister of State for Youth Services and Sports, Government of West Bengal and is currently now the head coach of the Bengal Men's Cricket Team. 

Wriddhiman Saha (395 runs)

Saha is regarded as one of the finest keepers of Indian Cricket. After his domestic success, went on to play for India in 40 test matches. He also went on to become the first player to score a ton in an IPL final.

Wriddhiman has announced his international retirement and his final match would be the Bengal vs Punjab match in Ranji Trophy 2024-25 in Kolkata starting from 30th January.

Anustup Majumdar (277 runs)

Known as the crisis man of Bengal cricket, Majumdar was one of the highest run-getters for Bengal in that tournament. Anustup scored 1 century and 1 half-century, an important one in the final.

Majumdar is currently the captain of the Bengal Ranji team. 

Debabrata Das

Though Das could only score 85 runs including one fifty in the tournament, he went on to become one of the greatest strikers of the ball in Bengal cricket history. I hope you still remember the scene when Gautam Gambhir gave away his player of the match in IPL 2012 to a young player. It was Debabrata Das.

Das is currently a selector under the Cricket Association of Bengal.

Read Also | Durgapur Cricket Club collaborates with SPORTIQO to elevate training: Wriddhiman Saha on the board

Arnab Nandi (6 wickets at 4.66 economy)

Arnab Nandi is one of the most successful club cricketers in Bengal cricket. He was pivotal with his off-spin bowling and lower-order batting in both the finals Bengal played in recent years. 

Though Nandi could not take Bengal over the line in the 2023 Ranji Trophy final, he was excellent for Sourav Ganguly's team in 2012. Nandi is still playing club cricket in Kolkata. This season he is leading the Kidderpore Sporting Club.

Mohammed Shami (11 wickets)

This man needs no introduction now. Shami was an integral part of that champion Bengal team. The fast bowler took 11 wickets at 24.27 average in that tournament.

He was Bengal's highest wicket-taker alongside Shukla in the tournament. One year later, Shami made his international debut and as they say, the rest is history. He is India's highest wicket-taker in World Cup history. 

Till now Shami has accumulated 448 international wickets so far in his career.

Iresh Saxena (8 wickets)

The former left-arm spinner took 8 wickets in that tournament and alongside Nandi, was Bengal's premier spinning option. 

Saxena was also part of the KKR team in 2012 which won the Indian Premier League. Saxena currently lives in Greater London, England.

Sourav Sarkar 

The tall medium pacer played in the final in place of Ashok Dinda and got the wicket of Suryakumar Yadav in the final. 

In 2009, he played two matches for Kolkata Knight Riders. Sarkar played in 31 first-class matches and took 111 wickets as well. 

He is currently a coach of the Bengal U-16 team. 

Players who did not play in the final but were in the squad

Arindam Ghosh

A stalwart of Bengal cricket, who flourished for the Indian Railways team, Arindam Ghosh is still playing at the Club Level in Kolkata. Ghosh played 2 games for KKR in IPL 2009 and played 68 first-class games for Bengal and Railways.

Jayojit Basu

Another top-order batter who did not take part in the final for Bengal. Jayojit Basu is one of the most successful batters in Kolkata Club Cricket's history. Despite scoring a lot of runs for clubs like Mohun Bagan, he could only play in 3 first-class and 8 List-A games for Bengal. 

Basu is still playing at the club level in Kolkata and also takes part in Minor County Leagues in England.

Read Also | Exclusive: Age does not matter, at 34, Jayojit Basu focusing on winning trophies

Saurasish Lahiri

Saurasish Lahiri is one of the most successful spinners for Bengal in First-Class cricket. The spinner played in 100 first-class games for Bengal and took 256 wickets. 

Lahiri retired in 2016 and is currently the head coach of the Bengal U-19 Men's Cricket team.

Sanjib Sanyal

If it was not for Laxmi Ratan Shukla's presence in the team, Sanyal could have become a great name in Bengal cricket as well. The pace-bowling all-rounder played in 47 First-Class and List-A games for Bengal and Railways.

Currently, he is an assistant coach of the Bengal U-19 Men's Cricket Team. 

Ashok Dinda (8 wickets)

One of the greatest fast bowlers to play for Bengal, Ashok Dinda could only play 4 games in the Vijay Hazare Trophy for Bengal in 2012.

However, Dinda had managed to make an impact even in those 4 games for Bengal. He took 8 wickets including a five-wicket haul. He also had an outstanding economy rate of 4.90 in the tournament. 

Dinda went on to take 420 first-class wickets and took 151 List-A and 151 T20 Wickets as well. Dina played in 13 ODIs and 9 T20Is for India. Post his retirement Dinda became a MLA from Moyna from BJP. He is currently one of the coaches of CAB's project Vision 2028. 

The Cricket Association of Bengal announced their squad for the first two matches of Ranji Trophy 2024-25 on Friday ahead of the new domestic season of Indian cricket. Experienced player Anustup Majumdar will lead the team while Wriddhiman Saha and Sudip Chatterjee to return to play for Bengal.

Both Wriddhiman Saha and Sudip Chatterjee had featured for Tripura in the last few seasons and now have returned to their home state to don the Bengal jersey once again. Though, young wicket-keeper batter Abishek Porel, who impressed one and all in the Duleep Trophy 2024, will also be in the squad, Saha likely to play as a batter in the team. 

Since the 2020-21 season, Anustup Majumdar has been the main batter for the team, scoring the most runs for Bengal in the last two seasons (867 in 2022-23 and 510 in the 2023-24 season). He was trusted with the captaincy responsibilities by the selection committee and head coach Laxmi Ratan Shukla.

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Along with them, the Bengal batting lineup will be boosted with the presence of opener Abhimanyu Easwaran, who has been in red of form in the Duleep Trophy and Irani Cup, scoring three back-to-back tons. Easwaran has been one of the best batters in the Indian domestic circuit in the last 7-8 seasons and Bengal will be hoping to have their best batter in great form when they meet Uttar Pradesh in their first match of the season. 

Sudip Kumar Gharami will be another batter to watch out for from the Bengal team, who after a great 2022-23 season, was not up to the mark in the last season. Moreover, this will be the first season in many years when Bengal will be taking the field without their highest run scorer in Ranji trophy history Manoj Tiwary, who announced his retirement last season.

A few youngsters like Shuvam Dey, who was the highest scorer in first-division cricket, were named in the squad to fill up the big boots left by Manoj Tiwary. 

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In the middle order, Bengal has called back Writtick Chatterjee, who was superb in the Bengal Pro T20 League and will be a key clog in the team with his off-spin bowling as well. Last year's Mohun Bagan's cricketer of the year, pace bowling all-rounder Avilin Ghosh found a place in the team along with Mohammed Kaif, Mohammed Shami's younger brother. 

In the spin bowling department, Aamir Gani has made a return to the first-class arena and he will play a key role alongside Pradipta Pramanik and Shahbaz Ahmed in the team. 

However, it is the pace bowling department, that has been one of the reasons for Bengal's success in the last few seasons. Current India pacers Mukesh Kumar, and Akash Deep will be partnering with young Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, who was the find of the season for Bengal last year.

But, we will have to keep an eye on India U-19 pacer Yudhajit Guha, who played in the India U-19 vs Australia U-19 series. Along with him, Rishabh Vivek can be an ex-factor for the team, who Sportz Point had discovered during a club game last season. 

Read Also: Exclusive: Hottest product in Bengal Pro T20 League, Pradipta Pramanik is controlling the controllable 

Bengal squad for the first two Ranji Trophy 2024-25 matches

Anustup Majumdar (C), Sudip Gharami, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Sudip Chatterjee, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Writtick Chatterjee, Abishek Porel (wk), Shahbaz Ahmed, Shuvam Dey, Avilin Ghosh, Akash Deep, Mukesh Kumar, Aamir Gani, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, Rohit Kumar, Yudhajit Guha, Md. Kaif, Pradipta Pramanik, Rishabh Vivek. 

Bengal's schedule for Ranji Trophy 2024-25

• 11-14 October 2024 | Uttar Pradesh vs Bengal | Lucknow
• 18-21 October 2024 | Bengal vs Bihar | Kolkata
• 26-39 October 2024 | Bengal vs Kerala | Kolkata
• 6-9 November 2024 | Karnataka vs Bengal | Bangalore
• 13-16 November 2024 | Madhya Pradesh vs Bengal | Indore

India hasn’t seen many great keepers who are also great batsmen until the mighty MS Dhoni came in the side. Before that, there were keepers who were good at keeping but didn’t do anything significant with the bat in hand. Over the last 10 years, teams have changed the thinking, and they want keepers who can change a game with the bat as well. Most of the teams are trying to do that so that they can get that extra batting strength which can come in handy. Let’s have a look at the Indian wicketkeepers who have the most Test runs.

Also Read: Most International Wickets for India (Pacers)

Most Test runs as a wicket-keeper for India

1. MS Dhoni | 4876 Runs

Indian former skipper MS Dhoni scored the most Test runs as a wicket-keeper for India. He played 90 Test matches in his career and scored 4,876 runs in 144 innings with help of 6 centuries and 33 half-centuries at an average of 38.09. The highest score of MS Dhoni was 224 which was made against Australia in Chennai. He is also the first Indian wicket-keeper to complete 4,000 Test runs.

Under MS Dhoni's captaincy, the Indian team topped the Test cricket rankings for the first time in 2009. Under Dhoni's era, the Indian team topped the Test cricket rankings for the first time in 2009.

2. Syed Kirmani | 2759 Runs

The former Indian wicket-keeper, Syed Kirmani played in 88 Test matches for India and remained India’s premier wicket-keeper in the late 1970s and ’80s before he retired in 1986. He scored 2759 runs and 198 dismissals in Test matches with an unbeaten 102 as his highest.

Kirmani was also the member of the 1983 World Cup-winning Indian team, led by Kapil Dev. He had an exciting World Cup behind the stumps as the prolific wicketkeeper-batsman accounted for 14 dismissals in the tournament.

3. Farokh Engineer | 2611 Runs

India’s batter and wicket-keeper Farokh Engineer was a baz-batter (aggressive batting baseball style) way before the term was invented, who thrilled crowds wherever he played. Farokh played 46 Test matches, scoring 2,611 runs at an average of 31.08, including two centuries and 16 fifties, with a highest score of 121. He also took 66 catches and completed 16 stumpings. 

Engineer is one of the first Indian wicket-keepers who was good at batting. He played some crucial knocks in India’s important Test victories. Engineer had the highest Test rating for an Indian wicket-keeper in his time as he reached 619 points. Many Indian keepers after him couldn’t reach that rating.

4. Rishabh Pant | 2419 Runs

Rishabh Pant is a classic case of his batting skills being preferred over his keeping skills. India has a better keeper in their squad, but they have preferred to go with Pant because he is a better batsman, and he showed that in the India vs Bangladesh first Test. Pant scored a magnificent 109 (128) smashing 13 fours and four sixes in his innings. Following his century, he levelled with legendary India captain MS Dhoni in terms of the most hundreds scored by an Indian wicketkeeper. 

Pant has scored a total of 2419 runs from 34 Test matches in his career so far at an average of 44.79 with six centuries and 11 fifties. Along with his six hundreds, the 26-year-old has also been dismissed six times in the 90s and also has an unbeaten 89* against his name in India's famous victory at the Gabba.

Also Read: Rishabh Pant Sets Field: Reminds glimpses of MS Dhoni

5. Nayan Mongia | 1442 Runs

Nayan Ramlal Mongia is one of the finest wicketkeeper batsmen to have ever played for India. His screams of ‘aiga’ from behind the stumps always encouraged his fellow bowlers. Also, his gritty batting proved to be an asset to the team.

Mongia played 44 Tests between 1994 and 2001, and scored 1,442 runs with the bat at an average of 24.03, which included a maiden ton as Test opener against an Australian attack comprising Glenn McGrath and Paul Reiffel. He also has six half centuries to his name.

6. Wriddhiman Saha | 1317 Runs

India wicketkeeper-batsman Wriddhiman Saha played 40 Test matches and scored 1,317 runs at 29.93, the sixth most Test runs as a wicket-keeper for India. He has three centuries and 6 half centuries to his name. Unfortunately, Saha’s career coincided with the last two. Of his 40 Tests, 29 came in the period between Dhoni’s retirement and Pant’s debut. And yet, Saha’s Test career came to an abrupt halt. 

During his career, Saha was arguably the finest wicketkeeper in men’s Test cricket. 

7. Kiran More | 1285 Runs

Kiran More was part of Indian teams between 1986 and 1993. More has played 49 Tests and scored 1,285 runs at an average of 25.70. He has scored seven fifties in his Test career but failed to convert any of them into triple figures and his highest score remained at 73.

A fearless batter in front of the stumps and a brilliant performer behind it, More was the complete package of a wicket-keeper any captain would love to have in their team. He was also appointed as the Chairman of the Selection Committee of the Indian Cricket Board before being replaced by former Indian captain Dilip Vengsarkar in 2006.