@barbarian said in Other Cricket:
@MN5 said in Other Cricket:
Genuine all rounders are pretty rare still.
Partly because you don't really need them in a cricket team. Nice to have, sure, but it's not like Steve Waugh's Australian team was desperate for a #6 who could roll the arm over a bit.
It's like tight forwards who can kick. Great, sure, whatever, but especially these days its a bit redundant if everyone else does their job.
I think a genuine all rounder can be hugely valuable to a team, as it gives you an extra bowler or batsmen compared to the opposition. But, they have to command their place as either a bowler or batsmen (or keeper) first and foremost. Too often teams (particularly the Black Caps) have tried to shoe horn in all rounders that are not really good enough at either discipline to command a spot on its own, but are reasonably handy at both so get selected. That just weakens the team overall. The focus has to be on selecting your best 6 batsmen, your best keeper, and your best 4 bowlers, and then if any of them are good at the other discipline that's a huge bonus.
I take your point though, and I think bowling all rounders are the most valuable for that reason as your bowlers will be called upon to bat in most test matches; a guy coming in at 8 or 9 averaging 30 odd makes your batting lineup that much more formidable. A batting all rounder that can bowl a bit can be useful but at the same time your top 4 bowlers should be able to handle the bulk of the load, so the batting all rounder will often only really get used if the other team is piling it on and your 4 front line bowlers need a bit of a rest.