IPL 2019: Ranking the best all-rounder for each team

Cricket is a peculiar sport, where a player can contribute to the team in different aspects. Apart from contributing with either bat or ball, each player contributes immensely in the fielding department. In the form of all-rounders, some of them are gifted to cause impact in all three departments.

T20 format established the importance of all-rounders, as teams wanted to accommodate seven batsmen and six bowlers in their playing eleven. The advent of franchise-based leagues where teams are built by player auction or draft, all-rounders gave the much-needed balance to the respective squads.

Indian Premier League teams were built on the same lines with franchises lined-up to form the core with an International star and some quality all-rounders. In 2008 runners-up Chennai had the likes of MS Dhoni with Albie Morkel and Jacob Oram while the winners Rajasthan had Shane Warne with Shane Watson and Yusuf Pathan. Coaches have adopted this strategy and have strengthened their teams with all-rounders.

Let us look at the list of best all-rounder from each IPL team:

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#8 Sam Curran (Kings XI Punjab)

Sam Curran will make his debut in IPL-12

Kings XI Punjab had an impressive start to the 11th edition of IPL winning five out of six games. They had a week's break and with that, they lost momentum in the later stages as they could muster only one win in the last eight games as they failed to qualify for the knockouts. They retained only nine of their players and were set for a revamp.

They bought as many as six all-rounders with England's teen sensation Sam Curran being the highest bid overseas player in 2019 player auction. Left-arm pacers have always troubled the batsman with the natural angle that they create coming over the wicket. Curran did trouble Indian batsman in the test series in which he was named as player of the series.

He is a dangerous batsman with the bat as well wielding the long handle. He made match-defining performances with the bat top-scoring for England in the first and fourth test. He is expected to play a key role in the fortunes of Kings XI Punjab. It will be interesting to see how he fares in Indian conditions.

#7 Moeen Ali (Royal Challengers Bangalore)

Ali is one of the most underrated players in the T20 format

Moeen Ali is one of the most underrated players in the T20 format. Both in the international and domestic arena he has pushed above his weight making impactful contributions to the team's success. With such a top-heavy batting line-up for England, he perfectly plays the role of a finisher.

His versatility was evident when he opened for Worcestershire and scored a 56 ball 115 comprising of 15 fours and seven sixes. He batted in the middle order for Royal Challengers Bangalore and contributed at a strike rate of 160+. He is a dependable option when it comes to the bowling department.

He was seen as a part-time bowler when he burst onto the scene. But he soon proved the critics wrong by picking up crucial wickets in the middle overs and not allowing the batsman to settle. Virat Kohli will be hoping for a similar performance from Ali forming a spin twin partnership with Yuzvendra Chahal.

#6 Chris Morris (Delhi Capitals)

The mighty South African is a robust T20 player

After finishing in the bottom three for five consecutive seasons from 2013-2017, Delhi Capitals wanted to rebuild the team from scratch. They started off the rebuilding phase in 2016 investing heavily in youngsters like Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer. In 2018 they retained this explosive duo along with experienced South African all-rounder Chris Morris.

Chris Morris came into the limelight with an impressive all-around performance in the Champions League T20 in 2012. With a career strike rate of over 150 in the T20 format, he has consistently played crucial knocks in the death overs. With this ability to hit the ball long way, he is a threat to the bowlers.

His main contribution over the years has been with the ball in hand. Standing at a height of 6' 6" and a natural jump in his action, he creates that extra bit of bounce which troubles the batsman. His yorkers have more often resulted in wickets due to the height from which it comes to the batsman.

#5 Krunal Pandya (Mumbai Indians)

Krunal has emerged as an integral part of MI's setup

Many might argue that his younger brother may be a better all-rounder, but the composure that Krunal Pandya has displayed in his short career makes him the better choice. His exploits in the final of IPL 2017 was a small example of what he is capable of. Coming in at 3/40, he took Mumbai Indians to a par score of 130. He then opened the bowling and kept the batsman quiet which helped the other bowlers to pick crucial wickets.

This makes him a great asset to the Mumbai based franchise. This is the reason why the management shelled out 20 times his base price in 2016. In 2018 Krunal was the highest bid uncapped player in the auction at ₹8.8 crore.

Mumbai Indians will depend heavily on Krunal Pandya as he is the only experienced spinner in the squad. Mayank Markande did well in the initial stage only to be tapped off in the second half. Krunal is expected to play a big part in the fate of Mumbai as IPL will be taking place in India despite general elections.

#4 Shakib Al Hasan (Sunrisers Hyderabad)

Shakib is an experienced T20 campaigner

Shakib Al Hasan made his international debut at a tender age of 18 and has been shouldering huge responsibility for his team. He has produced many match-winning performances with both bat and ball. But he was brought at a mere price of 2 cr despite being in the marquee list.

It proved to be one of the best moves by Tom Moody, as Shakib produced his best IPL performance ever both with bat and ball. He gave the much-needed stability in the middle order which Sunrisers lacked over the years. He scored 239 runs and also picked 14 wickets at an economy of 8 which was impressive for the fifth bowler.

Shakib has been in the top 3 of the ICC rankings for all-rounders in all three formats for years. It shows his exemplary consistency across formats and conditions. Although his participation in this year's IPL will be minimal because of the cricket world cup, he will play in the first few matches.

#3 Ben Stokes (Rajasthan Royals)

Ben Stokes in of the best all-rounders in the World

Ben Stokes is one of the new breeds of cricketers in which England cricket board invested to resurrect the fortunes of their limited overs team after 2015 Cricket world cup debacle. England has tasted more success than any other team after that and Ben Stokes' contribution has been immense.

With his all-around ability, he was the most sought after cricketer in the auctions that he has been part of. In 2017 he went for a whopping ₹14.5 crore by Pune but the Durham man did exceedingly well and won the most valuable player of the season award. He scored a scintillating hundred and won a match single-handedly in a run chase of 160.

His bowling also fetched a couple of man of the match awards with spells of 3/18 & 2/21 against RCB and MI respectively. He couldn't replicate the success with Rajasthan Royals in 2018. But Ajinkya Rahane will be hoping to see Stokes fire in all cylinders in this season.

#2 Dwayne Bravo (Chennai Super Kings)

Dwayne Bravo is a T20 freelancer

One of the most experienced players in T20 format is Windies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo. Having played in almost all established T20 leagues all over the world, Bravo has become a pioneer in the format. With explosive batting, extra-ordinary fielding, and dependable death bowler he is a complete package.

In fact, he became a better death bowler under the captaincy of Mahendra Singh Dhoni as he bowled all last four of the seven overs of T20 innings. He is the all-time leading wicket-taker in T20 cricket with 464 scalps while the second best is Lasith Malinga with 353.

He is dangerous with the bat because of his uncanny ability to six over third man and fine leg. His knock in the comeback game of Chennai Super Kings in 2018 was one for ages as he smashed 68 off 30 balls against the likes of Jasprit Bumrah and Muztafizur Rahman. He is also known for his superman fielding skills and has turned many matches with some unbelievable catching.

#1 Andre Russell (Kolkata Knight Riders)

Rusell possesses a rare ability to tonk the ball hard

Andre Russell is considered the best striker of the cricket ball among the current crop of players. He clears his front leg and hits sixes from extra cover region to square leg. His ability to clear the boundary line with ease makes the fielders pointless.

He was in full flow in IPL 2018, where he scored a whirlwind 36 ball 88 coming back after a year lay-off. He continued his form to the Caribbean Premier League. Coming into bat at 41/5, he smashed a 40 ball hundred and successfully chasing a target of 224. He did this after taking a hat-trick in the first innings.

Kolkata retained Andre Russell ahead of 2018 auctions, despite him not in the playing arena for a year. That speaks volume of impact he has had in the franchise. His batting strike rate of 166.50 and bowling strike rate of 18.6 is a perfect foil for an all-rounder.