The most valuable overseas player in the IPL: A statistical analysis
Chris Gayle has been one of the best players in the IPL
The IPL is just a couple of days away. Come April 3rd, the snazziest T20 league in the world will dawn upon us. The action starts in the home ground of last year’s victors, Kolkata Knight Riders, as they take on the Delhi Daredevils. The action will be spread over a good part of two months as it culminates on 26th of May, again in the Eden Gardens.
We are through 5 editions of IPL. Though Indian players form the crux of all squads, the international players are equally, if not more, important to the teams. They are the ones who pull in the crowds and provide teams with the X-Factor. We have had at least one representative from all Test playing nations, and one from the associate nation of Netherlands.
So, players from which team (barring India) offer the maximum value to the IPL teams? Which cricketing nations are the IPL teams most indebted too? And which players have been the most valuable to their IPL teams?
I personally felt that rating players based on their contract value will be incorrect and unfair. Let’s consider 2 players. Player X valued at $1.5 Million and Player Y valued at $750k. Let’s say both of them score about 250-odd runs, take 5 catches and 8 wickets in the 10 matches they have been part of. Numbers-wise, both of them have been equally important to their team’s performance. Bringing the contract value into the picture will make player Y twice as impactful as player X, which actually is not the case.
Taking cue from the fantasy games, I have adopted a point scoring system. All players will be rated based only on their performances, and not based on their contract value. This is much fairer, as it gives all players an equal footing to start with, and doesn’t burden or ease them with their contract values.
The points rewarded are as follows.
| Batting | |
| 1 run | 1 point |
| Half Century | +10 points |
| Century | +20 points |
| SR < 100 | -10 points |
| SR > 100 & SR < 120 | 0 points |
| SR > 120 & SR < 140 | +10 points |
| SR > 140 | +15 points |
| Bowling | |
| 1 wicket | +25 points |
| > 4 Wickets in an Innings | +10 points |
| Econ Rate < 6.50 | +15 points |
| Econ Rate > 6.50 & < 8.50 | 0 points |
| Econ Rate > 8.50 | -10 points |
| Fielding | |
| 1 catch | +10 points |
| 1 stumping | +10 points |
I have not included batting average and run-outs count. Batting average is a given, because being a game of just 20 overs, there tend to be quite a few not outs for batsmen, leading to bloated averages. This doesn’t always paint the best picture. A majority of the times, it is the batsman’s error coupled with the fielder’s judgment and skills that leads to a run-out. It would be unfair to credit only the fielder for it (except for a few cases like Jonty running out Inzamam, Yuvi running out VS Yeligati of Mumbai Indians and my favourite, Symonds running out Uthappa).
A total of 173 foreign players have been acquired by the IPL teams in the first 5 seasons, out of which 15 were not used even for a single match. Australia lead the pack with 59 players bought in the auctions, nearly 34% of the total. South Africa is second with 36 representatives. The bottom end of the barrel is represented by Zimbabwe and Netherlands with 2 and 1 players respectively.
First, the points accumulated by each player over their IPL career was calculated, followed by the average points per match (PPM). This was done for each team. The PPM value ranged from a lowest of -10 (Raymond Price, Abdur Razzak and Luke Wright with the honours) to a highest of 60.67 (Umar Gul). The overall average PPM for all players combined was 30.29. Excluding Zimbabwe and Netherlands, the average rises to 34.71.
| Team | Players bought (0 matches) | Average points per match (PPM) |
| Australia | 59(4) | 33.46 |
| South Africa | 36(6) | 33.84 |
| Sri Lanka | 21(2) | 34.68 |
| West Indies | 15(1) | 42.08 |
| New Zealand | 13(1) | 28.77 |
| Pakistan | 12 | 36.62 |
| England | 11(1) | 34.95 |
| Bangladesh | 4 | 33.29 |
| Zimbabwe | 2 | 5.25 |
| Netherlands | 1 | 19.93 |
Clearly, players from the West Indies have been most valuable to the IPL teams. They are worth an average of 42 points for every match they play, a good 8 points higher than the average. Though they have had just 15 of their players as a part of the IPL, most of them have been influential figures in their respective teams.
They played just one season, but that was enough for the Pakistanis to show what the IPL has missed since then. 12 Pakistanis have showed up in the IPL, and their impact is unquestionable. It is evident from their PPM of 36.62. After West Indies, Pakistan is home to some of the best T20 talent in the world.
Pakistan has some of the best T20 talent in the world
The rest of the teams are huddled together in between with an average PPM of 33-34. England, like Pakistan, has not exactly been open to the IPL. They have missed a bulk of the IPL matches, but have given consistent performances. New Zealand has had 13 of its players play for the IPL. Their PPM score of 28.77 suggests they have not always been at their best in the IPL and are not a safe bet.
Sri Lankan, South African and Australian players have the lion’s share of overseas players in the IPL. 30 of the Australian players have played less than 10 IPL matches, and more often than not with limited success. The number is 14 for South Africa and 8 for Sri Lanka. The three teams have their PPM hovering around the average PPM value of around 34.
Looking at players individually now, I have considered a minimum cut-off of 10 matches played as there have been cases of players playing in a couple of matches and giving their best performances, or being extremely poor. For example, Umar Gul, who has the highest PPM, has played just 6 matches, and Luke Wright who has a PPM of -10 has played just 1 match. These players can be ignored as one doesn’t get an idea of their consistency with such a small sample. The average PPM per player is around 32. A PPM of greater than 40 is an indication of a player’s consistency, and can be designated as a highly consistent performer.
| Player | Matches Played | Total Points | PPM |
| Shane Watson | 39 | 2332 | 59.79 |
| Azhar Mahmood | 11 | 616 | 56 |
| Sohail Tanvir | 12 | 671 | 55.91 |
| Chris Gayle | 49 | 2731 | 55.73 |
| Dmitri Mascarenhas | 13 | 681 | 52.38 |
| James Hopes | 21 | 1042 | 49.61 |
| Jacques Kallis | 88 | 4285 | 48.69 |
| Shuan Marsh | 42 | 1943 | 48.26 |
| Farveez Maharoof | 20 | 907 | 45.35 |
| Dan Christian | 21 | 950 | 45.23 |
| Dwayne Bravo | 62 | 2714 | 43.77 |
| Sunil Narine | 19 | 830 | 43.68 |
| Lasith Malinga | 70 | 3028 | 43.25 |
| Kevin Pietersen | 25 | 1062 | 42.48 |
| Ryan Harris | 34 | 1415 | 41.61 |
| Keiron Pollard | 58 | 2377 | 40.98 |
| Chaminda Vaas | 13 | 531 | 40.84 |
| Mike Hussey | 38 | 1536 | 40.42 |
| Sanath Jayasuriya | 30 | 1208 | 40.27 |
This list has 9 all rounders or players with multiple skills (whichever way you would like to call it), 5 bowlers and 4 batsmen. So, T20 is a batsman’s game is it?
The West Indians are again ruling the roost here with 4 players in the list. There are only 5 WI players who managed to clear the cut-off of 10 matches. The 5th player, Dwayne Smith, has a PPM of 35.61 and Marlon Samuels, who has played just 8 matches, has a PPM of 40. 5. Chris Gayle and IPL need no introduction. Dwayne Bravo and Keiron Pollard have been influential with their all-round skills. Sunil Narine was the biggest factor in KKR’s title win last season. The Windies players clearly have made IPL their own.
Shane Watson has been Australia’s best player in the IPL
The Australians have 6 players out of the 25 who cleared the cut-off of 10 matches. This includes the leader, Shane Watson. Watson’s appearances with the Rajasthan Royals have more often than not led to success for the team. His all-round skills have boded well for the Royals on every single occasion. The surprise in the list is James Hopes. He was a part of the initial seasons of IPL and did a commendable job for DD and KXIP. He has surprisingly not found any takers in seasons 4 and 5. Mike Hussey has been consistent throughout for CSK. The Super Kings have been assured of decent starts every time Hussey opened for them. Dan Christian had a couple of good seasons with the now-defunct Deccan Chargers.
Sri Lanka has 4 players in the list out of the 10 who cleared the cut-off. Three of them are no longer a part of the IPL, two retired (Vaas and Jayasuriya) and one out of favour (Maharoof). But their contribution can never be counted out. Maharoof had a couple of fantastic seasons with the Delhi Daredevils and was a key player for them. Vaas was a good wicket-taking option for Deccan Chargers, and Jayasuriya played some significant innings for the Mumbai Indians. And then there is Lasith Malinga. He has picked up a mind-boggling 103 wickets for Mumbai Indians, including the IPL and Champions League, in just 70 matches. Staggering numbers to say the least.
South Africa has just one representative in the list, the outstanding Jacques Kallis. Albie Morkel and Faf du Plessis touch the high thirties, but Kallis is way above his compatriots. It is also to be noted that Kallis has played the maximum number of matches (88) among all overseas players, and still maintains an incredibly high PPM of 48.69. Yet another feather in the cap for this legend.
England and Pakistan have 2 representatives each. Mahmood, Tanvir and Mascarenhas have played just 11, 12 and 13 matches respectively. Hence, it’s open to debate if they would have been this consistent over a longer period of matches. Kevin Pietersen has been consistent over his 25 matches and has reinforced his status as one of the most impactful players in the shortest version of the game.
The bottom end of the list consists of players with more than 10 matches but low PPM, hence demonstrating their ineffectiveness over a sustained period. The list contains a couple of names which no one would expect to see.
| Player | Matches Played | Total Points | PPM |
| Eoin Morgan | 18 | 252 | 14 |
| Mark Boucher | 35 | 599 | 17.11 |
| Ryan Ten Doeschate | 15 | 299 | 19.93 |
| Brett Lee | 44 | 953 | 21.65 |
| Glen McGrath | 16 | 364 | 22.75 |
| Ross Taylor | 59 | 1373 | 23.27 |
| Jacob Oram | 17 | 400 | 23.52 |
| Luke Pomersbach | 14 | 334 | 23.85 |
| Aiden Blizzard | 13 | 317 | 24.38 |
Yet again, the lower number of bowlers and all-rounders suggest that they always have a higher impact on a T20 game than they are credited for. A team can live with a non-performing batsman, but a non-performing bowler can spell doom.
Eion Morgan hasn’t been at his best in the IPL
The most shocking name in this list is obviously Glenn McGrath. He was one of the stars of the 1st season of IPL, but it was built more on his miserly bowling than wicket-taking. I believe he was much more valuable to the Delhi Daredevils than the numbers suggest. Stats can be deceiving at times.
The rest are major disappointments. Players like Morgan, Lee, Taylor, Oram and Blizzard are terrific performers in the shortest format of the game, but couldn’t make their performances count in the IPL.
Ross Taylor had a phenomenal season with RCB, but his stint with DD was nothing short of disastrous. Mark Boucher was exceptional behind the stumps, but his batting was left wanting. Jacob Oram’s stint with CSK was short and unfulfilling. His big-hitting and partnership-breaking skills had gone missing. Morgan and Blizzard, renowned T20 specialists, had a couple of good outings but were largely disappointing. Ten Doeschate, the only associate nation player in the IPL, was another bad pick for KKR.
So, the key points that IPL teams would do good to follow in future auctions and transfer windows are –
- Get some calypso flavour in your team. These guys are terrific in the T20 format of the game.
- Australia has a huge assortment of players with pretty good T20 skills. But that may not necessarily lead to good performances. Reason? They are half as good on Indian pitches.
- Get more all-rounders. They are the lifeblood of T20s.
- Bowlers win you more matches than batsmen. Hence, build your team around bowlers and not the other way round.
- As for batsmen, picking players who score 30-odd regularly are much better than players who give you a 70-odd every 5 matches.
- Allow the Pakistani players in the IPL already. We are missing some serious quality there.
- Chris Gayle and Lasith Malinga. Enough said.
- Jacques Kallis is a legend.
P.S: You can find the excel sheet with the points for all overseas players who have played till date here.