Towards total cricket

Teams covet the piece that completes the jigsaw — ‘keeper-batsmen and utility cricketers

January 31, 2015 03:32 am | Updated 03:32 am IST

Rahul Dravid. File photo: V.V. Krishnan

Rahul Dravid. File photo: V.V. Krishnan

It’s that era in sport in which teams covet multi-skilled players. Be it in football or cricket.

A multi-skilled genius is often a mystical figure. That’s why a Sir Garfield Sobers or a Jacques Kallis or an Adam Gilchrist is once-in-a-generation. So are Johan Cruyff and Franz Beckenbauer, who are pioneers of Total Football.

But, in sport, no tendency is as strong as the desire to win and this is what drives every team’s quest to locate that final piece to complete the jigsaw. Two by-products of this process are the wicketkeeper-batsman and the bits-and-pieces cricketer.

“We have been trying to find a regular wicketkeeper who will contribute with the bat,” said the then India captain Sourav Ganguly in 2004. “It is for that reason Dravid was made to keep wickets and if you have a look at our one-day performances (since the Natwest Trophy in 2002), a number of games have been won by batsmen batting at number seven.”

In large measure, the roots to this strain of thought can be traced to the legendary Australian Gilchrist. For long, a wicketkeeper’s identity was independent of his batting skills. The runs that came from his willow were always considered a bonus, even as late as the 1990s.

But, with Gilchrist doing what he did — destroying attacks at will — Australia had a merry run in 1999, 2003 and 2007. Every team wanted someone who could do the same.

The limited-over format’s increasing appeal influenced this drive to make the team as a whole seem greater than the sum of its parts. So much so that even Test selections were made on these considerations. The best example was the selection of Geraint Jones for the 2005 Ashes, ahead of Chris Read, who was widely considered the best gloveman at that time.

In the time before Gilchrist made his debut, the ’keeper-batsmen had an overall aggregate of 25,124 runs in 1130 matches at 20.09, with a strike rate of 69.31. In the days since then, a total of 1,09,457 runs have been scored in 2462 matches at 30.34, with a strike rate of 78.37.

The re-defining of the role of a wicketkeeper is also backed by statistics: in the ’70s, wicketkeepers scored at an average of 18.17 and a strike rate of 61.37. In the ’80s, it rose slightly to 18.62 and 67.77. An increase to 23.70 and 72.64 was seen in the next decade. In the first 10 years of the millennium, it was 29.53 and 77.42 and since 2010, it has gone up to 34.47 and 82.38.

It is no coincidence that a major part of the careers of some of the best wicketkeeper-batsmen stretch over the last 15 years, the period in which one can notice a significant explosion in the averages and strike rates.

Of the seven designated wicketkeepers with a minimum of 4000 runs, five have their careers dating to this period: K. Sangakkara (2000-2015; 353 matches, 12800 runs, 42.66 average, 79.34 strike rate), Adam Gilchrist (1996-2008; 282, 9410, 35.64, 96.94), M.S. Dhoni (2004-2015; 253, 8245, 52.51, 88.97), Mark Boucher (1998-2011, 294, 4680, 28.71, 84.93), and Brendon McCullum (2002-2013, 184, 4057, 30.73, 90.37).

Each of these wicketkeeper-batsmen can hold his place in the team, either as a wicketkeeper, or a batsman alone. But, with not every country as blessed, there is now a disturbing trend to look for a batsman-wicketkeeper instead.

The bits-and-pieces cricketer is no different. A thin line separates him from a genuine all-rounder, and in most cases, the former is expected to mould into the latter over time. But, evidence shows that many start as a jack of all trades and end up as masters of none.

England is still looking for its next Ian Botham — with due apologies to Andrew Flintoff — and India for its next Kapil Dev.

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