All-rounder

An all-rounder is a player who contributes with both bat and ball at a standard that would justify selection for either alone.

In practice most fall into one of two types. A batting all-rounder is a top-six batter who can bowl a few useful overs; a bowling all-rounder is a frontline bowler who can bat at seven or eight and turn 180 into 210. The genuine article, who would be picked for either skill on its own, is rare and priced accordingly at every auction.

All-rounders are valuable because a team sheet only has eleven names on it. With one, a captain can play six batters and still have five bowlers plus a sixth option, so an injury or an expensive over does not leave the attack an over short. In T20, the impact player rule has eaten into that advantage by letting sides swap a batter for a bowler at the break, but in Tests and ODIs, where no such rule exists, a real all-rounder is still the most useful player in the side.

In Masterstroke: all-rounder ratings feed their own world rankings, and a squad built by role at the auction will always have a slot marked for one.