Notes: (Sensitive Information Redacted)

The accompanying data spreadsheet has data for the top overseas all-rounders.  I am happy to explain any of the columns/calculations if required.

A number of observations should be noted:-

1) It is very rare for a player to add value both in batting and bowling, as separate disciplines.  Generally speaking, an all-rounder will be better at one discipline over the other. 

2) It is vital that career averages are not used for analysis.  Player’s levels change throughout their career, and can particularly make older players can look much better than they actually are (e.g. Andrew Strauss, who only averaged around 30 batting for England in Tests in his last five years in the team).  More recent averages, adjusted for previous opposition difficulty and current competition, are a much better indicator of the ability of a player, and are more useful for identifying under-valued players.

3) In the T20 Blast group stages in 2016, there was an average of 24.10 runs per wicket, and 7.84 runs per over.  This equates to a mean strike rate of 130.64.

4) These T20 Blast average figures indicate that the competition is very orientated towards batsmen, and the tournament is easier to bat in than most of the other major T20 competitions around the world.  There are various reasons for this, with the lack of quality overseas players and dilution of bowling quality due to the high number of teams several major contributory factors.  Essentially, what this means, is that an average batsman from other major T20 competitions will see their batting average improve if they play in the T20 Blast, whilst English batsmen will see their T20 Blast dominated average fall when they play for franchise teams abroad (as has been the case on many occasions).

5) These T20 Blast average figures changed slightly for batting positions 7/8/wicketkeeper, with those roles combining for a 2016 T20 Blast Group Stage average of 19.02 and strike rate 131.01.  On this basis, players batting in those positions will score fewer runs per wicket, but at a slightly higher strike rate, than average.

6) Because I value batting ability as a key component to a success of an all-rounder, all players in the data sample have a T20 Blast expectation average over 16.00.

7) Strike rate in all-rounder positions should be considered more important than batting average.  I cannot over-state the importance of this.  The majority of innings for all-rounders will come in the second half of a T20 innings, where it is important to accumulate runs quickly.  

8) Many T20 teams fail to understand this basic concept, and hide bad strike-rate batsmen down the order, which is totally counter-productive to scoring fast at the time when it is required the most (e.g. Borthwick at Durham).  Northants are using Moneyball techniques (whereby they use data/analytics to overcome financial disadvantages) and understand this - a player like Rory Kleinveldt is exactly what is required for a batting position of 8 - his expectation average of around 17 is a little low, but he will score at a strike rate of around 156.  If a number 8 batsman played an innings of 17 from 11 balls every time, he would add value to an innings.

9) As I illustrated in the article [REDACTED], [YOUR CLUB] have performed poorly in the 7/8/WK batting positions.  Regular batsmen in these roles were [REDACTED], [REDACTED], [REDACTED] or [REDACTED].  Data indicates that of these four players, only [REDACTED] has the ability to bat at 7/8. [REDACTED] is a decent boundary hitter but his expected average is below 8.00, so it is unrealistic to expect him to bat in these positions.  [REDACTED] would be the perfect player to bat at 7 for [YOUR CLUB], on a general basis (batting orders should be relatively fluid, dependent on the game state).

10) [YOUR CLUB] averaged 12.15 runs per wicket at a strike rate of 116.31 in the 2016 T20 Blast group stages for those roles.  This is the [REDACTED] worst in the entire competition.  Only [REDACTED] had a lower batting average, and [REDACTED] and [REDACTED] had a lower strike rate in these spots.  Therefore, identifying an all-rounder who can dramatically improve this area will be essential for success in 2017 and beyond.

11) On average, a T20 Blast batsman hits 16.01% of deliveries for a boundary.  This is one of the key areas that Northants used Moneyball to improve - according to reports, they signed Josh Cobb specifically for this purpose.  On this basis, I recommend that [YOUR CLUB] aim for their players to reach this figure as a bare minimum, and I would not recommend that [YOUR CLUB] sign an all-rounder whose boundary hitting percentage is significantly below this figure, unless they have very strong bowling numbers.  Any player hitting over 20% boundaries per balls faced would be a big asset when quick scoring is required.

12) Very few all-rounders who have strong batting data add huge bowling value - which I mentioned in my first observation.  In the data sample, only three all-rounders were significantly better bowlers than average - [REDACTED]  [REDACTED] and [REDACTED],  and the latter two players had smaller bowling data samples than is ideal.

13) Many of the top all-rounders are well-known T20 franchise players, and are therefore likely to command high wages, or will already be contracted to other clubs, or required by their national teams.  Therefore, there are many fewer under-valued all-rounders than specialist batsmen or bowlers, but given the lack of choice, taking advantage of data is even more important than for specialist batsmen or bowlers.

Recommended Player Report:-

Ranked by all-round mean deviation:-

Player 1 - Age [REDACTED] - Country [REDACTED].   Left hand bat, Right Arm Medium-Fast.  

[REDACTED] batting data is better than common perception and playing for [REDACTED] recently, he scored plenty of 20+ scores, which is ideal for an all-rounder.  He scores runs quickly, and has excellent bowling expectation, both from a wicket-taking and economy perspective.

Summary - Genuine Quality All-Rounder.

Player 2 - Age [REDACTED] - Country [REDACTED].  Right hand bat, Fast-Medium.  

[REDACTED] played for Surrey last season but didn’t hugely impress.  Surrey have only announced the signing of Kumar Sangakkara as an overseas player so far, so it is possible that [REDACTED] is available.  Despite the performances for Surrey, I wouldn’t hold his  performances for them against him, because Surrey’s T20 tactics are generally questionable and are likely to have put pressure on him.

Examples of this are their preference to bat first, when all data indicates chasing offers more value on the vast majority of grounds, and Surrey’s T20 team also contain too many low strike-rate players, which puts pressure on fast scorers like [REDACTED] to deliver, frequently in difficult/impossible situations.  His T20 Blast batting expectation numbers are superb (expectation average of 38.49, strike rate 156.69) and his bowling data shows that he is also better than average both for wicket-taking and economy.  

Summary - Main strength is his batting, but he’s also a very reliable bowler, and may not command such a high wage as he has done previously.

Andre Russell - Age 28 - West Indies.  Right hand bat, Right Arm Fast.  

Arguably the most high-profile all-rounder in the world, Russell played for Notts last season but has not signed for a T20 Blast team yet.  With Russell, you are likely to pay huge wages, but he will be a match-winner, with an expected batting average of 30.78 coming at an incredible expected strike rate of 176.43.  Russell hits over 20% of balls faced for boundaries, which is a huge number.  Russell’s bowling is also solid, with a slightly more wicket-taking dynamic as opposed to economy, although his economy rate is still fine.  

**Now serving a ban.**

Summary - He will be expensive but his batting can win matches virtually single-handedly.  

Player 4 - Age [REDACTED] - Country [REDACTED].  Right hand bat, Slow left-arm spin.  

Opens the batting and has captained [REDACTED] in the recent [REDACTED] T20, where he hit an unbeaten 107 vs [REDACTED].   It’s fair to say that [REDACTED] is a batting all-rounder (his expected strike rate is superb for an opening batsman, and he has hit 19.16% of deliveries for boundaries in the last two years) but his spin bowling is under-rated, particularly from an economy perspective, where my data expects him to cost 6.57 runs per over in the T20 Blast.  [REDACTED] is likely to be a cheaper option than most other recommended players, but there is no doubt that he can add vital depth to the batting order (enabling the likes of [REDACTED] or [REDACTED] to bat one spot down) and provide a solid spin option.  

Summary - A real left-field Moneyball choice who is likely to offer excellent value for money.

Kieron Pollard - Age 29 - West Indies.  Right hand bat, Right Arm Medium-Fast.  

Another high profile West Indian all-rounder, and one who is very batting orientated.  My data expects him to average 41.46 in the T20 Blast, at a great strike rate just shy of 155.  However, Pollard’s bowling isn’t anything special, with his T20 Blast expected average being around 30 at average economy.  

Summary - Probably expensive, great batsman, but mediocre bowler.

Player 6 - Age [REDACTED] - Country [REDACTED].  Right hand bat, Right Arm Medium.

Another Moneyball choice.  [REDACTED]  bowling numbers are superb (expected T20 Blast average below 16 at around 7.50 runs per over) although his sample size isn’t the biggest, and his batting offers depth, although unfortunately his expected T20 Blast strike rate of around 115 isn’t nearly as good as I’d like (has only hit 12.54% of balls faced for boundaries in the last 2 years).  

Summary - If [REDACTED] had a better batting strike rate, he’d be a superb option.  Any signing of him would depend whether his bowling can compensate for his poor batting strike rate, or whether some solidity in the middle-order is welcomed.  However, he’s likely to be cheaper than many other all-rounders.

Player 7 - Age [REDACTED] - Country [REDACTED].   Right hand bat, Right Arm Fast-Medium.

It is unlikely that [REDACTED] will be considered for his country in the near future, so should be available as an overseas player.  Injuries have hampered [REDACTED] in recent years, but his data is solid - T20 Blast expectation batting average of 33.88 coming at a strike rate of 126 (however, his boundary rate is low) and his bowling is under-rated, both from an economy and wicket-taking perspective.  

Summary - A balanced all-rounder, who would add value both as a batsman and a bowler.

Mahmudullah - Age 30 - Bangladesh.   Right hand bat, Right arm spin.

A key player for the Bangladesh national team, Mahmudullah has a high batting expectation for the Blast at 40.10, coming at a strike rate of around 134.  His bowling isn’t as strong, however, with economy being a huge issue for him in the last couple of years.

Summary - Good enough as a batsman alone, although is more of a strike-rotator than boundary hitter.  Takes wickets, but can be expensive.  

David Wiese - Age 31 - South Africa.  Right hand bat, Right Arm Medium-Fast.

Wiese played for Sussex last season, and is an aggressive batsman, who has hit over 16% of deliveries for boundaries in the last two years.  My expectation data has his T20 Blast average at 28.63, at a strike rate of almost 153.  This makes him a good batsman on its own, but Wiese’s bowling has some value, being average for wicket-taking, although not at the best economy rate.

Summary - A batting all-rounder, who can find the boundary regularly.  However, more of a back-up bowler than most on this list.

Angelo Mathews - Age 29 - Sri Lanka.  Right hand bat, Right Arm Fast-Medium.

Sri Lanka’s captain who will be in the UK for the Champions Trophy this summer.  As far as I can tell, he has no other international commitments this summer.  

Mathews, despite a poor boundary percentage, is a solid batsman without considering his bowling, which shows excellent economy.  Having said this, Mathews’ wicket-taking ability isn’t as strong as most other players recommended.

Summary - Batting all-rounder, who is more of a strike-rotator.  A decent economy orientated bowler who should regularly be able to take 1-30 type figures from 4 overs.  Likely to be an expensive purchase.

Player 11 - Age [REDACTED] - Country [REDACTED]  Right hand bat, Right arm spin.

[REDACTED] starred for [REDACTED] in the recent [REDACTED] T20 (his second overseas contract), and also scored a half-century against [REDACTED] in a first-class match earlier in December.  His batting is likely to be volatile - his T20 Blast expected average is around 26, but coming at a superb strike rate of around 155.  His boundary hitting is also around average.  

His spin bowling is expected to be around average as well, indicating that he is a viable option as both a batsman and bowler.  

It is also worth noting that [REDACTED] would be the first player from [REDACTED] to play in England, and could therefore provide some commercial value, and would also be likely to command a low salary.

Summary - Another Moneyball choice.  [REDACTED] offers decent batting at a high strike rate, and solid spin.  Definitely worth considering as a cheap financial value option.

Shahid Afridi - Age 36 - Pakistan.  Right Hand Bat, Legbreak bowler.

Afridi, who played in a very unbalanced Hampshire team last year, is a player made for T20, with a very aggressive batting style demonstrated by him hitting 20.58% of balls faced for boundaries in the last two years.  Despite his age, this style shows no sign of slowing down.  However, whilst you get quick runs with Afridi (T20 Blast expected strike rate of 170) he is not a consistent batsman, shown by his expected T20 Blast average of just 20.  

Having said this, Afridi’s bowling is solid, particularly from an economy perspective.  He has stated in interviews that he wants to continue playing, despite many calls for his retirement in Pakistan.

Summary - Possibly an expensive financial choice, but a high profile, quick run-scorer who bowls spin with economy.  

Shane Watson - Age 35 - Australia.  Right Hand Bat, Right Arm Fast-Medium.

Watson is a player on the decline, but still has something to offer.  He is a prime example of observation 2 in the notes above, illustrating the danger of using career averages.  

These days, Watson’s batting is much more of a threat than his bowling, with a T20 Blast expected average of around 35 coming at a strike rate just shy of 145.  This is good enough to command a batting place on its own, and this is unfortunately what may eventually happen with the remainder of Watson’s career - his bowling numbers in recent years are poor, particularly from a wicket-taking consideration.  

Summary - A very batting-orientated choice, who is unlikely to offer too much from a bowling perspective.  Also very injury prone and likely to be expensive financially.

James Neesham - Age 26 - New Zealand.  Left Hand Bat, Right Arm Medium.

An excellent acquisition by a mediocre Derbyshire team last season, Neesham does not look to have been retained, with Derbys already announcing Jeevan Mendis and Imran Tahir as overseas signings.  

Neesham’s batting is decent on its own, with an expected T20 Blast average of 27.54, coming at a strike rate of around 142, and he also has hit an above average 17.24% of balls faced for boundaries in the last two years.  

Furthermore, Neesham is a wicket-taking threat, although his numbers unfortunately indicate he can go for plenty of runs.

Summary - A decent batsman who can hit boundaries, whilst taking wickets with the ball.  If his economy rate was better, he would be a superb choice.

Rory Kleinveldt - Age 33 - South Africa.  Right Hand Bat, Right Arm Fast-Medium.

Unfortunately, Kleinveldt has re-signed for Northants.  However, I wanted to include him in discussion as he represents the ultimate Moneyball player, scoring runs at a fast rate lower down the batting order, whilst offering plenty with the ball.  

Kleinveldt has hit an immense 27.12% of deliveries for boundaries in the last two years, a far higher figure than any other all-rounder in this sample, a number much higher than the likes of Andre Russell and Carlos Brathwaite, who are notorious for their abilities in this area.

Northants picked up a superb player in Kleinveldt, and [YOUR CLUB] should be looking to acquire similar types of players from a data perspective in the future.

Summary - The blueprint for a Moneyball player.

James Faulkner - Age 26 - Australia.  Right Hand Bat, Left Arm Fast-Medium.

Faulkner has already signed for Lancashire next season.  His batting is actually quite over-rated (low boundary hitting percentage, average strike rate) but his bowling is around average too, and he did very well with the ball last time in the T20 Blast.

Dwayne Bravo - Age 33 - West Indies.  Right Hand Bat, Right Arm Medium-Fast.

Bravo recently starred - more with the ball than the bat - for Dynamites in the recent Bangladesh T20 tournament, but his overall batting numbers are solid enough.  In the T20 Blast, my expectation is that he would average 25 at a strike rate just over 130, and be a reasonable wicket-taking threat, albeit at a higher economy than I’d like.  It is likely that many other teams, and probably Bravo himself, rate him higher than my data, so it makes sense that there are better options.

Summary - Solid but unspectacular batsman, and slightly below average bowler.  Probably financially expensive, so there are better choices.

Glenn Maxwell - Age 28 - Australia.  Right Hand Bat, Right Arm Spin.

A batting all-rounder, who hits boundaries above the key 20% of deliveries number.  Maxwell can take apart a team on his own, and his strike rate is even more impressive when you consider that he has often opened the batting.  However, the data does not indicate that he is a good bowler, with poor wicket-taking and economy numbers. 

Summary - Great batsman, but questionable bowler, and likely to be financially expensive.  Any team signing Maxwell needs to treat him as an occasional bowler, as opposed to one that can be relied on to bowl four overs in every match.

Shakib Al Hasan - Age 29 - Bangladesh.  Left Hand Bat, Left Arm Spin.

The captain of Bangladesh, Hasan is a solid but unspectacular batsman, demonstrated by his T20 Blast expected average of around 25, at a mediocre 122 strike rate.  He also has only hit 10.32% of deliveries for boundaries in the last two years.

However, he is one of the better bowlers in the sample, with a strong economy rate and slightly below average wicket-taking ability.

Summary - A balanced all-rounder who adds value both at batting and bowling.  However, is likely to be expensive financially (he is a serial franchise player) and is a player who is good at everything, rather than being great at something.  

The remaining players were sampled were not recommended by data as an overseas all-rounder, for various reasons:-

Ashton Agar (Australia) - Poor boundary hitting ability, and expensive with the ball.

Ben Cutting (Australia) - Great strike-rate batsman, but very poor bowling data.

Darren Sammy (West Indies) - Similar to Cutting.  Awful bowling economy data.

Carlos Brathwaite (West Indies) - Poor batting average, great strike rate.  Terrible bowling data.

Dan Christian (Australia) - Similar to Sammy/Cutting.

Thisara Perera (Sri Lanka) - Declining data, probably due to age.  Far too expensive from a bowling economy perspective.

Seekugge Prasanna (Sri Lanka) - A diluted version of Brathwaite (not as powerful with the bat, but a slightly better bowler).

Stuart Williams (Zimbabwe) - Batting strike rate poor, bowling data poor.