IPL 2019: Top 5 all-rounders to watch out for
More often than not, all-rounders rake in a lot of money in domestic T20 leagues.
All-rounders were in high demand during the IPL 2019 auctions as well. Out of the 60 players going under the hammer during the auctions, as many as 25 were all-rounders.
It is always a boon to have a couple of players in the team who are handy with both the bat and the ball. It has proven to pay dividends in the past and some of the all-rounders have proven to be bang for the buck.
The most (joint) expensive player to be bought at the auction was Varun Chakaravarthy. Kings XI Punjab paid a handsome ₹8.4 crores to procure the services of the bowling all-rounder.
Sam Curran, Shivam Dube, Carlos Brathwaite, and Axar Patel are some of the other all-rounders to receive handsome amounts during the auction.
However, in this article, we look at the Top 5 all-rounders to watch out for in IPL 2019. This is regardless of whether they are retained players or new players purchased at the auctions. Consideration has been given to their performances in the recent past.
Before we proceed, here are the Honourable Mentions:
Hardik Pandya (Mumbai Indians), Kieron Pollard (Mumbai Indians), Ravindra Jadeja (Chennai Super Kings), Keemo Paul (Delhi Capitals), Sam Curran (Kings XI Punjab), Mohammad Nabi (Sunrisers Hyderabad), Vijay Shankar (Sunrisers Hyderabad), Ben Cutting (Mumbai Indians), Marcus Stoinis (Royal Challengers Bangalore), Hardus Viljoen (Kings XI Punjab), Oshane Thomas (Rajasthan Royals).
#5 Kedar Jadhav (Chennai Super Kings)
There is no dearth of potent all-rounders in Chennai Super Kings.
Jadhav's IPL 2018 season was cut short as he suffered a grade-2 hamstring tear in the opening match against Mumbai Indians. The talented all-rounder had been roped in by CSK during the 2018 IPL auctions for ₹7.8 crores. The Pune-born player has been retained by CSK ahead of the 2019 IPL for the same price.
Jadhav will be looking to make a huge impact in the IPL this time around as the all-rounder was ruled out in the last edition and could only get to play one match.
The batting all-rounder played a few sublime knocks for Maharashtra in the Ranji Trophy.
He was called up to the Indian side to play the 5 ODIs against New Zealand. Jadhav played a couple of good cameos with the bat and also clinched a total of 3 wickets.
The attacking player has also impressed in the two ODIs played against Australia at home. He was the Player of the Match in the first ODI as he hit 81 off 87 balls with the bat and helped India win the match. In addition, Jadhav also scalped the wicket of the dangerous Marcus Stoinis in the first ODI.
Jadhav could not do much damage with the bat in the 2nd ODI against Australia but was effective with the ball. He dismissed the well-set Usman Khawaja and ended with the bowling figures 1 for 33 in 8 overs.
CSK will benefit immensely if Kedar can continue the impressive run of form throughout IPL 2019.
Also Read: IPL 2019: Ranking the all-rounders of the 8 IPL team