All-rounders play a major role in a team that can change the course of a game with either ball or bat. The Indian Premier League is a platform for many young foreign and Indian players to showcase their talent to the world as they represent their respective countries in senior level or Under 19 level. In the IPL 11 season, many new all-rounders are taking part in the tournament.
Here we look at the top 10 all-rounders to watch out for in IPL 2018:
- Moeen Ali
The hard hitting all-rounder from England will be playing his first IPL season. Royal Challengers Bangalore side has picked him for 1.70 Lakhs. He bowls off spin and bats lower down the order hitting big shots putting pressure on the opposition bowlers. His T20I debut for England was in 2014 against West Indies
Moeen Ali has played 22 T20I’s for England scoring 202 runs with a strike of 112.84. His best score in T20I format is 72*. With strong batting line up, Ali would be an ideal choice who can bat well lower down the order and ball 4 overs in the middle. With the ball, he has taken 14 wickets in 22 matches with an economy of 7.69. For England, he has played 49 test matches and 70 ODIs.
- Colin de Grandhomme
Colin de Grandhomme is an aggressive hitter who can smash the bowlers all over the park coming lower down the order. He made his T20I debut for New Zealand in 2012 against Zimbabwe. Since his debut, Grandhomme has scored 162 runs in 19 matches with a strike rate of 151.40. With the ball, his performance is not great taking 7 wickets only.
In IPL 10, Collin de Grandhomme was a part of Kolkata Knight Riders franchise. He played 12 matches and scored 126 runs with strike rate of 136.95. His best score in IPL season was 36. With the ball, he took 4 wickets from 12 matches at an economy of 8.43. New Zealand all-rounder is a medium pace bowler and would represent Royal Challengers in IPL 11.
3. Abhishek Sharma
Abhishek Sharma the young talented Indian all-rounder was a part of the winning team which won Under 19 World Cup 2018 held in New Zealand. He is a left-arm spinner and hard-hitting batsman coming down the order.
He was bought by Delhi Daredevils for 55 Lakhs. The all-rounder has played in 4 first-class matches in which he scored 202 runs with the best score of 94. With the ball, Sharma took 6 wickets so far. Along with that the new debutant in IPL 11, played 10 List A matches scoring 158 runs with the best score of 46. In List A tournament with the ball, he took so far 5 wickets from 10 matches at an economy of 4.68 runs.
4. Anukul Roy
Anukul Roy was impressive in the Under 19 World 2018. He was the leading wicket-taker in the tournament taking 14 wickets from 6 matches at an economy of 3.84. Roy bowls left-arm spin and bats left-handed. In the domestic tournament, Roy played only four List A matches scoring 58 runs. With the ball, he took 4 wickets with an economy of 3.91.
In the IPL 11 season, Roy was bought by Mumbai Indians franchise for 20 Lakhs. He might get chances to play in XI. With his all-around abilities and many stars in the squad, the young all-rounder would learn many things from seniors.
5. Shivam Mavi
Shivam Mavi another talented all-rounder was impressive with ball in the Under 19 World 2018. He bowled with pace and created pressure on opposition batsman. Mavi bowls right arm medium pace and bats right-handed.
He has not played any first-class matches for any stateside. Shivam took 9 wickets from 6 matches with an economy of 4.12 runs per. He was bought by KKR franchise for RS 3 Crores and would be hoping to play in the squad. Along with Shivam Mavi, India Under 19 bowler Kamlesh Nagarkoti has been picked by KKR franchise.
6. Jofra Archer
Jofer Archer the young talented all-rounder from West Indies has represented Hobart Hurricanes in BBL 7. He made his T20s debut in 2016. In 41 T20’s matches, Jofra scored 195 runs with a strike rate of 143.38. With the ball, he has taken 50 wickets from 41 matches with best figures of 4/18 at an economy of 7.90.
Rajasthan Royals bought the young all-rounder for 7.20 Crores. His ability to bowl Yorkers in death overs could be the ideal bowler for a side who will be coming to IPL after the 2-year ban.
7. D”Arcy Short
The young Australian all-rounder will be playing his first IPL this season for Rajasthan Royal. He is a hard-hitting opening batsman who can clear the boundaries with ease. His T20 debut for Hobart Hurricane was in 2016 against Sydney Sixers in BBL 6. Short represented Australia in 5 T20I’s and scored 196 with the best score of 76 at a strike rate of 149.61.
In BBL 7, he made the top score of 122 runs 69 balls. He bowls part-time left-arm orthodox spin. Darcy Short would be an ideal choice for Rajasthan who can give the team a flying start that will put pressure on opposition bowlers.
8. Aryaman Birla
Aryaman Birla the 20-year-old all-rounder bats left-handed and bowls left-arm slow orthodoxly. He plays for Madhya Pradesh. He has played only 1 first-class match against Odisha in 2017. In that match, he scored a total of 22 runs.
This season, the young Birla will play for Rajasthan Royals. Son of Kumar Mangalam Birla, billionaire industrialist and chairman of Aditya Birla would be looking to perform well if given a chance in playing XI.
9. Marcus Stoinis
Marcus Stoinis is another promising all-rounder. He would be playing for Kings XI Punjab in this season. The Australian all-rounder made his debut against England in 2015. Since his debut, he has played only 7 T20I’s scoring just 20 runs. In bowling, Stoinis has not been impressive taking 3 wickets in 7 matches.
He made his T20 debut in BBL during 2012. Australian all-rounder has played 50 matches scoring 686 runs with the best score of 99 at a strike rate of 118.68. In bowling, he took so far 32 wickets with best figures of 4/15.
In IPL 10, he played only 5 matches for Kings XI Punjab scoring just 17 runs and took 2 wickets. Marcus Stoinis would play a big role with the bat and ball if Kings XI Punjab gives him a chance in playing XI. He played only 7 matches in IPL 2016 scoring 146 runs with the best score of 52.