If you are a fantasy cricket league addict, you might well be more than aware of the value of all-rounders, that is the exceptional ones at the exceptional art of multi-tasking. If you are to use this framework to guess the Most Valuable Player of a tournament, it would likelier be an all-rounder than a specialist.
But this IPL edition has been an aberration. With the exception of Shane Watson, few others have excelled in juggling with both their crafts with the same success. Though the wicket-and-runs charts don’t give full justice to cameos, it can be a fair indicator of their consistency. Hence, all-rounders haven’t necessarily justified their billing.
For example, Shane Watson in the only all-rounder in the top-15 run-getters this year while Dwayne Bravo is the sole entry in the top-15 wicket-takers’ list.
After eviscerating Chennai with this edition’s maiden hundred, Watson struck an unbeaten 98 against the Sunrisers. This confidence rubbed off onto his bowling, too, and against Bangalore he accounted for three wickets including Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli before racking up a 31-balled 41. His closest contender is Ravindra Jadeja, who has not only chipped in with useful, and often match-defining, knocks but also crucial wickets. Against KKR, he whipped off their tail before smashing 36 off only 14 balls.
Others have mostly utilised only one of their assorted skill-sets. Like for instance Jacques Kallis, whose multiple faculties functioned once (3/13, 41 against SH).
The most striking disparity is Dwayne Bravo’s. With 19 wickets, he holds the purple cap but has purchased 51 runs in seven innings. Maybe, he comes way down the order, or maybe he has been focusing too much on bowling, but he is gradually evolving into a bowling all-rounder, as opposed to the batting all-rounder tag attached to him. This was the same Bravo, who accumulated 371 runs at 46.37 last year.
Compatriot Kieron Pollard’s batting has been far better whereas his bowling has been ordinary. He has bowled only 20 overs in 10 matches , has whittled out only five wickets, leaking 9.60 an over. Mostly all-rounders, some genuine and most pretenders, are enduring a lean patch, and teams are reluctantly reverting to the specialists, though the worth of an all-rounder when he clicks can’t be undervalued. The fantasy cricket league would concur.