IPL 2018: 3 South African all-rounders who need to feature in next year's IPL

The value of an all-rounder could not be emphasized on enough. It is an extremely pleasing feeling for any captain to have a quality all-rounder in his squad who he can turn to either for runs or for wickets.

One could almost view an all-rounder as being two players combined into one. Having abilities with both the bat and the ball makes a player very valuable to a side irrespective of the format which is being played. One only needs to think back to a player such as Ben Stokes who has been regarded as one of the best all-rounders in cricket at the moment. Stokes has proven himself to be an extremely crucial part of the English squad across all three formats and his staggering bid price at this year's IPL auction underlines just how highly sought after he is.

One cannot speak about great all-rounders without mentioning Jacques Kallis. Kallis is widely regarded as being the best all-rounder in the history of cricket and his performances with both bat and ball show exactly why he deserves this title.

South Africa have a good track record for producing some of the finest all-rounders which cricket has to offer. Who can forget the hard-hitting Albie Morkel or the destructive Chris Morris?

It, therefore, comes as a surprise that South Africa's all-rounders don't feature as heavily in the IPL as would be expected. In this article, we will take a look at 3 such all-rounders who should be considered for next year's season

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#1 Jon-Jon Smuts

Jon-Jon Trevor Smuts is a name which might not be very well-known in the cricketing world yet, but this could be the opportunity that the young man from South Africa needs in order to make an impact on the international stage.

Smuts is an opening batsman and a slow left-arm bowler. This will provide any franchise who he plays for with something in both the batting as well as the bowling department, which should come in handy especially on slow pitches where spinners might thrive.

Some cricketing fans might consider Smuts to be a risky selection, especially due to the fact that he is relatively unknown. Then again, this might be the perfect reason to select the young man.

#2 David Wiese

David Wiese is no stranger to the IPL, having played for the Royal Challengers Bangalore during 2015 and 2016.

The all-rounder from South Africa is a handy middle-order batsman and his aggressive style will be an attractive characteristic which franchises might want to consider. He has shown his ability to hit the ball cleanly on various occasions for South Africa and could play the role of a finisher if he is required to.

He is also quite useful with the ball and has shown a fondness for bowling slower deliveries. This is a skill which makes him a bit difficult to score huge boundaries off and is particularly useful in the IPL.

Wiese hasn't had a magnificent T20 career in the batting department. He has only played 11 innings with a high score of 28 against the West Indies. His IPL career is significantly better with a high score of 47* against Mumbai Indians. In terms of his bowling, Wiese has registered career-best figures of 5/23 against the West Indies and 4/33 against Mumbai Indians.

This suggests that he has more to offer with the ball than with the bat but anyone who has seen him batting will know that he does have the ability to clear the ropes when needed.

#3 Andile Phehlukwayo

Andile Phehlukwayo was overlooked in the IPL auction earlier this year, but the man from South Africa might just be an exciting selection for next season.

The all-rounder from South Africa has made an impressive start to his international career and is a regular in both the ODI and T20 squads for his country.

His energy and enthusiasm make him a wonderful addition to any team and he possesses a lot of talent with both the bat and ball. He has shown that he has the ability to score lower down the order as well as take wickets, which would certainly be something that franchises should consider.