Is the obsession with all rounders ruining the squad strength of subcontinental teams?

[The Bald Eagle]

The dropping of proper batsmen and bowlers like Sarfaraz Khan, Sanju Samson, Sahibzada Farhan, Zafar Gohar, Sharjeel Khan, Shahab Khan, Mayank Agarwal, Anamul Haq, Hazratullah Zazai, Gulbadin Naib, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Chandimal etc from the team squad by different Asian Cricket Boards are prime examples of it. The dropping of such quality players at expense of all rounders is causing squad imbalances in the asian team roasters. So should the subcontinental cricket boards revise their strategy of preferring average all rounders over proper quality bowlers and batsmen, just to add more stability to their respective sides?

May be, it is also the reason behind 7 years long ongoing ICC trophy drought for the Asian cricket teams.

 

[Asad T]

If you look at India's World Cup X1, after Pandiya was injured, they only had Jadeja as an all-rounder. So they had four specialist bowlers. That is okay as long as you don't lose early wickets. If you do, it can put a lot of pressure on the lower order batters. That's why KL Rahul went into a shell in the final.

So while India played well and made it to the final. Sometimes you need batting depth.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

If you look at India's World Cup X1, after Pandiya was injured, they only had Jadeja as an all-rounder. So they had four specialist bowlers. That is okay as long as you don't lose early wickets. If you do, it can put a lot of pressure on the lower order batters. That's why KL Rahul went into a shell in the final.

So while India played well and made it to the final. Sometimes you need batting depth.

I personally believe that Hardik's injury was a blessing in disguise for team India in recent CWC as it allowed the opportunity to bowl to a quality bowler like Mohammed Shami. The only bad thing for them was that they didn't possess as good a batting replacement for Hardik that's why they suffered in the final. If they had player like Sanju in place of Surya then may be the results would have been different for them.

 

[jnaveen1980]

In world events you need batting depth. You never know when lack of it will hurt you. Because when you go with 4 proper tailenders you cannot afford a collapse. you cannot afford even a single bowler going off the boil. It requires a tight rope walking scenario each and every match. Australia knew that was the soft underbelly of India and exploited it fully. WInning the toss made their job easier as well. Until India fixes that issue they ain't winning a trophy. It is not just choking. It is the team structure that doesn't allow them to cover all scenarios. Having said persisting with useless all rounder like HOoda was also a wrong move. THey have to back the right ones.

 

[jnaveen1980]

This argument is true for Pakistan though as they carry too many bit part players. Ifti, Agha. Shadab can be classified as bit part in ODIs. India needs depth just to add few extra runs and give confidence to top order. But pakistan expects more from them. They expect runs and acceleration as well as they go slow up the order.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

This argument is true for Pakistan though as they carry too many bit part players. Ifti, Agha. Shadab can be classified as bit part in ODIs. India needs depth just to add few extra runs and give confidence to top order. But pakistan expects more from them. They expect runs and acceleration as well as they go slow up the order.

True, but you forgot to mention Mohammad Nawaz there. He, too, has become a liability of late for team Pakistan and has also been blocking the place for a specialist spinner/ batter for quite some time now. We need to replace him with a quality player.

As about India they also need to kick out players like Jadeja and Ashwin as they are well past their prime now and blocking place for the indian youngsters.

 

[jnaveen1980]

True, but you forgot to mention Mohammad Nawaz there. He, too, has become a liability of late for team Pakistan and has also been blocking the place for a specialist spinner/ batter for quite some time now. We need to replace him with a quality player.

As about India they also need to kick out players like Jadeja and Ashwin as they are well past their prime now and blocking place for the indian youngsters.

Ashwin was picked just because it was India. Sundar's perennial injury issues is the only reason Ashwin keeps coming back.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

This argument is true for Pakistan though as they carry too many bit part players. Ifti, Agha. Shadab can be classified as bit part in ODIs. India needs depth just to add few extra runs and give confidence to top order. But pakistan expects more from them. They expect runs and acceleration as well as they go slow up the order.

Yep, Pakistan played with four so called all rounders in CWC 2023 Clash against India. They were Shadab, Iftikhar, Nawaz and Hasan Ali. And unfortunately these four could not add 20 runs cumulatively. Certainly this obsession with all rounders cost us the match against India and also world cup. Hope so we play only with one or two quality all rounders. Instead of four. Four is just too much.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Ashwin was picked just because it was India. Sundar's perennial injury issues is the only reason Ashwin keeps coming back.

Well Ashwin is no doubt a good pick in Test for India. But bro how do you explain this.

Ignored Sarfaraz Khan Slams 61-Ball Century In India’s Intra-Squad Match against Rohit Sharma’s India ‘A’.

Well bro. Can you explain how come an average all rounder shardul can be part of side but not sarfaraz khan?

Ignored Sarfaraz Khan hits ton against Rohit Sharma's India 'A' - Inside Sport India

Repeatedly ignored, Sarfaraz Khan hits ton vs Rohit Sharma's India 'A' in three-day intra-squad practice game ahead of IND vs SA Test series.

www.insidesport.in

 

[FearlessRoar]

I think all-rounders are in demand in modern-day cricket, and this trend has been set by the West Indies for quite some time now. Each team should have 2-3 all-rounders in the playing XI. It is a necessity now.

 

[Vikram1989]

Well Ashwin is no doubt a good pick in Test for India. But bro how do you explain this.

Ignored Sarfaraz Khan Slams 61-Ball Century In India’s Intra-Squad Match against Rohit Sharma’s India ‘A’.

Well bro. Can you explain how come an average all rounder shardul can be part of side but not sarfaraz khan?

Ignored Sarfaraz Khan hits ton against Rohit Sharma's India 'A' - Inside Sport India

Repeatedly ignored, Sarfaraz Khan hits ton vs Rohit Sharma's India 'A' in three-day intra-squad practice game ahead of IND vs SA Test series.

www.insidesport.in

Thakur is for vfast bowling all-rounder position 8.Sarfaraz for 5.Sarfaraz got rattled by Mark wood in ipl.So everyone was not sure about his batting against fast bowling. He has severe attitude issues as he faced multiple disciplinary actions already. India sticking with Rahane also not helped either.

 

[FearlessRoar]

Thakur is for vfast bowling all-rounder position 8.Sarfaraz for 5.Sarfaraz got rattled by Mark wood in ipl.So everyone was not sure about his batting against fast bowling. He has severe attitude issues as he faced multiple disciplinary actions already. India sticking with Rahane also not helped either.

Is Shardul Thakur an all-rounder? I don't remember him playing a valuable knock at the international level.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Thakur is for vfast bowling all-rounder position 8.Sarfaraz for 5.Sarfaraz got rattled by Mark wood in ipl.So everyone was not sure about his batting against fast bowling. He has severe attitude issues as he faced multiple disciplinary actions already. India sticking with Rahane also not helped either.

Bro trust me Indian team needs to bring in youngster like Harshit Rana, he is far better than Mr Shardul

 

[Vikram1989]

Is Shardul Thakur an all-rounder? I don't remember him playing a valuable knock at the international level.

In test matches Thakur won the matches against eng in oval, against aus in Brisbane. So it's dream for any cricketer let alone an all rounders.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

In test matches Thakur won the matches against eng in oval, against aus in Brisbane. So it's dream for any cricketer let alone an all rounders.

Bro if two or three great performances do become criteria then I guess Pakistan also should not have dropped shadab in recent series but they did. It's all about form bro not past few laurels.

 

[Vikram1989]

Bro trust me Indian team needs to bring in youngster like Harshit Rana, he is far better than Mr Shardul

Problem with sc team is they they will take forever to get a good replacement and to replace bad player also.

 

[Vikram1989]

Y

Bro if two or three great performances do become criteria then I guess Pakistan also should not have dropped shadab in recent series but they did. It's all about form bro not past few laurels.

Yeah I agree completely but no sc team will behave ruthlessly and think for team

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Problem with sc team is they they will take forever to get a good replacement and to replace bad player also.

Yep agree to this point. Time is of great essence and due to late decisions many good players do get retired let alone getting proper chance. In India you can use the example of Wasim Jaffer lots of run in first class but no sufficient representation with national side. In Pakistan Abid Ali is a prime example of it.

 

[Buffet]

Bro if two or three great performances do become criteria then I guess Pakistan also should not have dropped shadab in recent series but they did. It's all about form bro not past few laurels.

He has played 10 tests , all outside India. Averaging 25 with ball and 20 plus with bat. 3 great performances to influence the game out of 8-10 games. Seems a fine contributor to me.

If it was 2-3 performances out of 30 tests then it will be a problem.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

He has played 10 tests , all outside India. Averaging 25 with ball and 20 plus with bat. 3 great performances to influence the game out of 8-10 games. Seems a fine contributor to me.

If it was 2-3 performances out of 30 tests then it will be a problem.

Good stats though. But does not give a feeling of an X factor guy like Ravi Bishnoi.

 

[Buffet]

I don't think having all rounders are bad as long as they contribute with bat and ball both. Not just on paper but actual performance against good teams.

Pakistan's issue is not really having many all rounders, issue is different. They are not good in either bowling or batting. I won't club India here because in ODI they are playing without all rounder and I think Jadeja is not really a good one in ODI. But in Test format, Ashwin and Jadeja has contributed with bat and ball both to win away series for India. I think Ashwin played 40-45 overs to draw a test in Aus in last series. That's proper batting.

It seems many of you have probably too high an expectation from an all rounder. For example,

Jadeja Away from home in the last 5 years:

Batting avg 39
Bowling Avg 28

Now that's a really top class contribution from bat and ball when playing away.

As I said, not sure why Jadeja and Ashwin are getting clubbed with fake all rounders who don't know how to either bowl or bat. Any team will kill to have such all rounders in their line up.

 

[Buffet]

Good stats though. But does not give a feeling of an X factor guy like Ravi Bishnoi.

He is not some gun all rounder with great skills in either batting or bowling. So more of a useful all rounder. Gun all rounders are rare anyway.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

I don't think having all rounders are bad as long as they contribute with bat and ball both. Not just on paper but actual performance against good teams.

Pakistan's issue is not really having many all rounders, issue is different. They are not good in either bowling or batting. I won't club India here because in ODI they are playing without all rounder and I think Jadeja is not really a good one in ODI. But in Test format, Ashwin and Jadeja has contributed with bat and ball both to win away series for India. I think Ashwin played 40-45 overs to draw a test in Aus in last series. That's proper batting.

It seems many of you have probably too high an expectation from an all rounder. For example,

Jadeja Away from home in the last 5 years:

Batting avg 39
Bowling Avg 28

Now that's a really top class contribution from bat and ball when playing away.

As I said, not sure why Jadeja and Ashwin are getting clubbed with fake all rounders who don't know how to either bowl or bat. Any team will kill to have such all rounders in their line up.

These days fans expect all rounders like Ben Stokes or Glenn Philip. Anyone else masquerading as all rounder is just an occupier of position of a more abled proper bowler or batsman.

 

[Buffet]

These days fans expect all rounders like Ben Stokes or Glenn Philip. Anyone else masquerading as all rounder is just an occupier of position of a more abled proper bowler or batsman.

Well, Stokes is surely a better batsman than Jadeja. But if you take a look at the last 5 years,

Jadeja - Batting Avg 41, Bowling Avg 25
Stokes - Batting Avg 39 , Bowling Avg 31

So not sure why posters won't want some one like Jadeja. It's not as if you get many options like Stokes. Jadeja has been absolutely top class in bowling, batting and there are not many better fielders than Jadeja in world cricket. He shouldn't play in ODI or T20 , but he a top class test all rounder.

Having luxury to play a world class spinner like Jadeja who can even keep it tight on one end if wicket is not offering much is super luxury for any team. He will walk into every single team right now.

How many bowlers avg 25 home and away both in the last 5 years?

How many batsmen avg around 40 home and away both in the last 5 years?

Here you have one player doing both with gun fielding.

 

[jnaveen1980]

These days fans expect all rounders like Ben Stokes or Glenn Philip. Anyone else masquerading as all rounder is just an occupier of position of a more abled proper bowler or batsman.

You have to be very good in one department bare minimum and decent enough in other department. Cannot be half baked in both departments which is what pakistan has right now. THeir idea is having 4 half baked all rounders mean they can get some 70 80 out of them and 20 to 30 overs out of them. Problem is they can fail in both departments consistently. You need atleast 4 players who are specialists in Bowling.

 

[Cricket Warrior]

I don't find this issue in the subcontinent apart from the Pakistan team. They are the only ones who couldn't produce any genuine all rounders after Razzaq and Afridi.

India has Jadeja and Pandya.

Bangladesh has Shakib.

Sri Lanka has Hasaranga and Shanaka.

Ironically in Pakistan we are considering Faheem and Amir Jamal as all rounders that is our standard right now.

 

[BouncerGuy]

If there is a quality all-rounder in the team then it can help the team but unfortunately, Pakistan has been playing some below-par players who are just called the " all-rounder" because they can bowl a few deliveries here and there. After Razzaq, Afridi and Hafeez, there was no genuine allrounder left in Pakistan for ODIs and test specifically. T20 can work out work nawaz and shadab but not the other formats.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Well there has been substantial change in Pakistan's definition of "All-rounder" instead of having elite all rounders that we had in the past now we are content to afford space to anyone in team who could bat and bowl a bit. No matter how bad he is.

In my opinion, India too does not have good all rounders as Jadeja is well past his prime and Hardik is an injury prone player.

 

[batandballbattle]

All rounders are fine if they are good enough at either discipline, the issue is a lot of them are mediocre in both.
Of the subco teams we have the biggest issue here, shadab, nawaz faheem etc. have been getting free rides for a while now

For india you only really have the shardul problem. Pandya has a knack for breaking partnerships and his handy down the order and whilst Jadeja's batting has regressed he is still a good enough spinner.

Sri lanka had one of their best as an AR in hasaranga and have really felt his injury absence. Matthews is getting on a bit and shouldn't really be part of the plans for too long now anyway. Wellalage shone in the asia cup vs india but hasn't really done much since, he is still young though and has time on his side.

Afghans have spin as their trump card and their ARs play to that, if the surface is right they can be lethal. For bangladesh Shakib has regressed but like Matthews shouldn't be around for much longer now, don't know enough about their other ARs.

 

[FearlessRoar]

All rounders are fine if they are good enough at either discipline, the issue is a lot of them are mediocre in both.
Of the subco teams we have the biggest issue here, shadab, nawaz faheem etc. have been getting free rides for a while now

For india you only really have the shardul problem. Pandya has a knack for breaking partnerships and his handy down the order and whilst Jadeja's batting has regressed he is still a good enough spinner.

Sri lanka had one of their best as an AR in hasaranga and have really felt his injury absence. Matthews is getting on a bit and shouldn't really be part of the plans for too long now anyway. Wellalage shone in the asia cup vs india but hasn't really done much since, he is still young though and has time on his side.

Afghans have spin as their trump card and their ARs play to that, if the surface is right they can be lethal. For bangladesh Shakib has regressed but like Matthews shouldn't be around for much longer now, don't know enough about their other ARs.

Pandya has not been consistent at bowling. I remember he was not bowling in 2019-2020. A genuine all-rounder whom I have witnessed is Jacques Kallis.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Of the subco teams we have the biggest issue here, shadab, nawaz faheem etc. have been getting free rides for a while now

You made a great analysis bro. Completely agree with you.

The irony for Pakistan is that some people even considers Hasan Ali and Shaheen Afridi as all rounders LOL. So from here you can get an idea how much have we lowered our criteria for a "all rounder".

 

[jeetu]

To be decent Test AR batting average should be above 25 and bowling average should be under 35. Also should they have more than 1 wicket per test. With more than 10 tests as sample size only Imran Khan and Mushtaq Mohammad fits the criteria.

 

[batandballbattle]

Pandya has not been consistent at bowling. I remember he was not bowling in 2019-2020. A genuine all-rounder whom I have witnessed is Jacques Kallis.

Kallis is probably one of the best if not the best AR in history. Him and IK occupy the highest tier.

As for pandya he can be expensive but can cause issues, he was bowling some nice tight lines before he got injured in the WC. Stats aren't amazing but on eye test he is one of the better ARs currently

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Kallis is probably one of the best if not the best AR in history. Him and IK occupy the highest tier.

As for pandya he can be expensive but can cause issues, he was bowling some nice tight lines before he got injured in the WC. Stats aren't amazing but on eye test he is one of the better ARs currently

I would say Kallis, Andrew Symonds in modern era and Kapil and IK from 1980s were the best AR. And about Pandya he does have sporadic good runs but after that his good form just drops sharply. His injuries and inconsistencies are just ruining his career. I think Washington can be a good replacement for him.

 

[Champ_Pal]

Every team needs one batting all rounder and one bowling all rounder.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Every team needs one batting all rounder and one bowling all rounder.

Agree but can't understand obsession with them. Before Pandya's Injury was playing with 3 all rounders in all the matches and Pakistan in recent times always plays with four. Ridiculous!
And the irony is that the players we call all rounders don't even have a clue about it.

 

[MANU ROY]

Well there has been substantial change in Pakistan's definition of "All-rounder" instead of having elite all rounders that we had in the past now we are content to afford space to anyone in team who could bat and bowl a bit. No matter how bad he is.

In my opinion, India too does not have good all rounders as Jadeja is well past his prime and Hardik is an injury prone player.

Indian team needs give more matches to Washington sundar in future he can replace Ashwin in test

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Indian team needs give more matches to Washington sundar in future he can replace Ashwin in test

Yep a good pound to pound replacement for Ashwin even better in the batting department.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

He has played 10 tests , all outside India. Averaging 25 with ball and 20 plus with bat. 3 great performances to influence the game out of 8-10 games. Seems a fine contributor to me.

If it was 2-3 performances out of 30 tests then it will be a problem.

Bro, he has failed again today just made 24 with the bat today. Don't see him excelling at all against South Africa. It would be better for India to replace him with a proper gun bowler or batsman.

 

[ads101]

I think having an allrounder these days is a must. Problem with Pakistan is they are just too weak with the bat. Most teams include one without significantly weakening their batting strength. We’ve been trying to make guys like Shadab, Nawaz, Faheem, Wasim jr into allrounders when they aren’t really allrounders. Imad was probably the closest to a true allrounder that we had but he’s retired from internationals now, no good for tests, and we probably would benefit from a pace allrounder more. Other teams like India have a fast bowling allrounder and a spin bowling allrounder to choose from depending on conditions Like Pandya and Jadeja. We dont even have one currently.

 

[Buffet]

Bro, he has failed again today just made 24 with the bat today. Don't see him excelling at all against South Africa. It would be better for India to replace him with a proper gun bowler or batsman.

You think he should be making 50 in SA in conditions where ball is moving all around? I think its unrealistic expectation from him.

To put it in context,

Dravid - 32
YK - 32
Inzzi - 31
Pujara - 28
MoYo - 26
Dhoni - 26


List goes on ,

50 runs partnership by an all rounder is very useful in SA when pitch is like this. Making 25 odd runs is pretty good for an all rounder. I won't call it a failure. He is never going to be gun in either batting or bowling, but he has done reasonably well in 8-10 tests.

 

[Kianig89]

A genuine question, what is Salman Agha strength Batting or Bowling, tbh he is average in both aspects unlike any genuine allrounder as Jadeja , Marsh, Head , Santner

 

[The Bald Eagle]

You think he should be making 50 in SA in conditions where ball is moving all around? I think its unrealistic expectation from him.

To put it in context,

Dravid - 32
YK - 32
Inzzi - 31
Pujara - 28
MoYo - 26
Dhoni - 26


List goes on ,

50 runs partnership by an all rounder is very useful in SA when pitch is like this. Making 25 odd runs is pretty good for an all rounder. I won't call it a failure. He is never going to be gun in either batting or bowling, but he has done reasonably well in 8-10 tests.

A pretty useful innings by Shardul Thakur. He gets to his well deserved century. He has even eclipsed Prasidh Krishna now

 

[Kianig89]

Fake Allrounders is the best penny stock to invest specially in Pakistan these type of players have immense value and false fantom since mid 90s we've been fooled by fake allrounders as the next messiah to save our cricket , alot of good players like Umer Gul Saeed Ajmal Asad Shafiq never got the chance to captain Pakistan but every fake allrounder was given captaincy and people were lured in believing them as modern sobers.
Pakistan ' fake allrounder have longevity regardless of their pedigree
Shahid Afridi (1996-2015)
Shoaib Malik 1999-2022
Muhammad Hafeez 2003-2020

That's combined 59 years of mediocrity between the trio
--------------------------
Now the baton is passed to
Imad Wasim 2012-23 dusted
Shadab Khan 2015-present
Muhammad Nawaz 2016-present
Faheem Ashraf 2016-pesent

The merry go in selection will ensure that above mentioned will have a career span of 15+years. Pakistan cricket is known for its journey in circles

 

[cricketjoshila]

India has been severely affected by playing a poor bowler like Thakur, because he is expected to score a few.

This is the stupidest strategy.

Dravid and co. kept Shami out of the WC team so that Thakur could play. Tells you how poor a coach Dravid is.

 

[sweep_shot]

India has been severely affected by playing a poor bowler like Thakur, because he is expected to score a few.

This is the stupidest strategy.

Dravid and co. kept Shami out of the WC team so that Thakur could play. Tells you how poor a coach Dravid is.

Shami should've been here. Why was he not selected? That was a blunder.

 

[cricketjoshila]

Shami should've been here. Why was he not selected? That was a blunder.

Shami is injured.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

India has been severely affected by playing a poor bowler like Thakur, because he is expected to score a few.

This is the stupidest strategy.

Dravid and co. kept Shami out of the WC team so that Thakur could play. Tells you how poor a coach Dravid is.

Don't blame Dravid only. The Indian team as a whole has been mess. I think it's high time to kick out players like Thakur who are depriving others from a team spot and don't perform either.

Rohit too has lost flare. India need a new specialist test opener too. And Ashwin was awful today so would have been Jadeja too. So it's time to bring quality batters and bowlers instead of mediocre all rounders.

 

[cricketjoshila]

Don't blame Dravid only. The Indian team as a whole has been mess. I think it's high time to kick out players like Thakur who are depriving others from a team spot and don't perform either.

Rohit too has lost flare. India need a new specialist test opener too. And Ashwin was awful today so would have been Jadeja too. So it's time to bring quality batters and bowlers instead of mediocre all rounders.

Rohit just scored 500 runs in the WC.

He is still the best opening option India has.

Jaiswal is very green. Gill was kept out to give space to KL. Iyer was kept out to give space to Rahane Pujara etc.

It will take atleast one SENA cycle to get these players going. Pant will return by that time.

If all things go well, in next WTC Indian test batting may look like this.

Gill
Jaiswal
KL
Kohli
Iyer
Pant

Indian team has gone downhill since Dravid took over.

Team selection has been dire since close to a decade.

There isn't a test spinner who can replace Jadeja or Ashwin currently.

The team lacked any planning in bowling except Bumrah who is just in his own league.

Unless the current coaching staff is replaced, Don't expect any improvement.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

I don't think having all rounders are bad as long as they contribute with bat and ball both. Not just on paper but actual performance against good teams.

Pakistan's issue is not really having many all rounders, issue is different. They are not good in either bowling or batting. I won't club India here because in ODI they are playing without all rounder and I think Jadeja is not really a good one in ODI. But in Test format, Ashwin and Jadeja has contributed with bat and ball both to win away series for India. I think Ashwin played 40-45 overs to draw a test in Aus in last series. That's proper batting.

It seems many of you have probably too high an expectation from an all rounder. For example,

Jadeja Away from home in the last 5 years:

Batting avg 39
Bowling Avg 28

Now that's a really top class contribution from bat and ball when playing away.

As I said, not sure why Jadeja and Ashwin are getting clubbed with fake all rounders who don't know how to either bowl or bat. Any team will kill to have such all rounders in their line up.

Well Jadeja did not deliver today. Let's see if he could be of any utility tomorrow. After today's performance it is India's test to lose now for sure

 

[Buffet]

Well Jadeja did not deliver today. Let's see if he could be of any utility tomorrow. After today's performance it is India's test to lose now for sure

It was a lottery pitch. I won't judge anyone based on this test. Nothing to do with Jadeja, just a general comment.

If SA can take a lead of 100 plus then it will get interesting. Some one just needs to start swinging and get lucky.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

It was a lottery pitch. I won't judge anyone based on this test. Nothing to do with Jadeja, just a general comment.

If SA can take a lead of 100 plus then it will get interesting. Some one just needs to start swinging and get lucky.

Yep pitch today was bad for batting but really good for fans as it offered an exciting thriller. Hopjng for a nail bitter though. Jansen, the South African AR, will be the key for South Africa tomorrow. If he performs like he did in first Test then India could be in big trouble.

 

[jnaveen1980]

If you have genuine all rounders like Pandya they are worth 2 players. Axar 2 players. You get 4 players out of them. It is the bits and pieces players who are not good in both departments that will be harmful.

 

[Aang_The_last_airbender]

A pace all rounder adds an extra flexibility to a team in selections and strategy.
Mitch Marsh, Stoinnes, Kallis, Flintoff, Ben Stokes, Pandya, Imran Khan, Klusner, Cronjie. They just made the teams better by their presence alone.

Spin all rounders are great but they somehow they lack the impact pace all rounder does to a team.

 

[JaDed]

It’s a necessity now in T20..can be a bowling all rounder or a batting one but definitely need em, and no Shadab isn’t one.

 

[JaDed]

A pace all rounder adds an extra flexibility to a team in selections and strategy.
Mitch Marsh, Stoinnes, Kallis, Flintoff, Ben Stokes, Pandya, Imran Khan, Klusner, Cronjie. They just made the teams better by their presence alone.

Spin all rounders are great but they somehow they lack the impact pace all rounder does to a team.

Spin all rounders make a world of difference in modern LOI - Afridi 2007,2009 Yuvi -2011 .. Axar this wc did well except of that one terrible over..

 

[Aang_The_last_airbender]

Spin all rounders make a world of difference in modern LOI - Afridi 2007,2009 Yuvi -2011 .. Axar this wc did well except of that one terrible over..

A different era and also the point is the spin all rounders are very very much dependent on the conditions. Afridi was a freak and T20 was new. Yuvi was absolute GOD mode in India in 2011, again conditions.

We could afford Axar and Jadeja in the same team only because we had Pandya. Else it could have happened Axar sitting out the entire tournament and relying on Dube saab's bowling. Marco Jansen Allowed South Africa to play two spinners freely

 

[JaDed]

A different era and also the point is the spin all rounders are very very much dependent on the conditions. Afridi was a freak and T20 was new. Yuvi was absolute GOD mode in India in 2011, again conditions.

We could afford Axar and Jadeja in the same team only because we had Pandya. Else it could have happened Axar sitting out the entire tournament and relying on Dube saab's bowling.

That is unfortunately true, Spin allrounders need conditions

 

[BouncerGuy]

It is not the obsession with all-rounders that is ruining the team, it is the dosti-yaari bits and pieces players that ruin your team.

 

[Aang_The_last_airbender]

It is not the obsession with all-rounders that is ruining the team, it is the dosti-yaari bits and pieces players that ruin your team.

You need a decent pacer who can consistently score quick fire 30s in T20s or 50s in ODIs. Such a player simply gives you an option to add a genuine authentic spinner as per the need of the game without compromising the tail and is a relief bowler for your pacers. Where Pakistan has been stumbling over the last few years since Saeed Ajmal is : "WHERE IS THE SPINNER?"

 

[BouncerGuy]

You need a decent pacer who can consistently score quick fire 30s in T20s or 50s in ODIs. Such a player simply gives you an option to add a genuine authentic spinner as per the need of the game without compromising the tail and is a relief bowler for your pacers. Where Pakistan has been stumbling over the last few years since Saeed Ajmal is : "WHERE IS THE SPINNER?"

Pakistan have had few but they are not getting enough recognition because Pakistan is banking on players who perform once in a while in internationals and are more league bullies.

Need to find proper spinner, we already have few fast bowling all-rounders in line so no worries there.