IPL 2021: 5 overseas players to watch out for

4. Glenn Maxwell (RCB)

Glenn Maxwell will want to make an impact with RCB in the IPL.

RCB's batting unit was below-par last season. Among their batsmen who faced at least 25 balls in the last season, only AB de Villiers (158.74) had a strike rate over 125 in IPL 2020. Their batsmen also failed to score enough boundaries as their balls-per-boundary ratio (7.21) was the worst in the competition.

Their batsmen struggled quite a bit against spinners in the middle-overs. Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers weren't good enough against spinners, and the rest also failed to step up. RCB failed to fix this problem throughout the season, and thus, they turned to Glenn Maxwell for IPL 2021.

RCB had the lowest scoring rate between overs 7-16 in IPL 2020.With Glenn Maxwell, they hope to iron that weakness out in #IPL2021But,Maxwell in this phase since 2019🔹In all T20s: SR 137.5🔹In IPL: 66 off 77 balls, 7 dismissals pic.twitter.com/l3iCLbsOBH

— Stat Doctor🩺 (@stat_doctor) April 2, 2021

Mike Hesson and co went all out to buy Glenn Maxwell in the auction. Maxwell's returns in the past few IPL seasons fail to inspire any confidence. However, the Australian is a skilled T20 batsman. He is among the world's best middle-order batsmen in international limited-overs cricket, especially in T20Is.

Hadn't quite clocked how incredible Glenn Maxwell has been in T20Is. His record since the 2016 World T20:24 inns965 runsScoring rate 9.84rpo / Strike Rate 164Average 56.76Batting Impact in that time, +10.5, is the highest of any T20I batsmen (min 20 inns).#MaxwellBall

— Ben Jones (@benjonescricket) September 3, 2020

The right-handed batsman can be a nice fit in the Bangalore-based side's middle-order. As an aggressor in the middle-overs, Maxwell brings the X-factor that RCB's batting line-up so desires ahead of IPL 2021. The Red Army has seven games in Kolkata and Mumbai, and thus, Maxwell becomes a crucial player in those games, given his ability to clear the boundary at will on batting-friendly decks. Also, if the decks are flat in Ahmedabad (four games), he may just have a great season.

The 32-year-old is powerful and plays unorthodox shots like switch-hits, reverse sweeps, and other aerial shots like second nature. Maxwell is also a good part-time off-spinner and can be pretty useful against southpaws if used well.

5. Fabian Allen (PBKS)

Fabian Allen could be the answer to PBKS's problems at IPL 2021.

Punjab Kings' middle-order (barring Nicholas Pooran) was among the worst in IPL 2020. Only RCB's batsmen (batting position: 5-7) performed worse than PBKS'. The Punjab batsmen averaged 17.72 with a mediocre strike rate of 115.38.

Anil Kumble and co acquired Fabian Allen at a base price of 75 Lakh INR in the auction. It could potentially be the biggest steal of the auction. However, it will be interesting to see where they fit him in.

The right-handed batsman is quite useful against medium-pacers in the lower order. He might be limited by quality away-turning spin bowling and high-end pace, but the Kings may just get their money's worth in the former SRH all-rounder.

Allen is among the best middle-order batsmen in the Caribbean Premier League since 2018. Even though he missed out in the last edition of the CPL, a low-scoring tournament, his potential is there for all to see. Averaging 37.44 in his 14-innings CPL career, the Jamaica-born cricketer has scored 337 runs at a strike rate of over 181.

Among middle-order batsmen who've scored at least 200 runs in the CPL in this time frame, only Dwayne Bravo has bettered Allen's strike rate and balls-per-boundary ratio (3.8). Allen has batted in tough situations on a few occasions, but his temperament has helped him.

Fabian Allen is one of the world’s most dangerous hitters in the death overs, returning the fourth highest strike rate in the history of the format in the last five overs of the innings. #NZvWI pic.twitter.com/1Y6SXP40hj

— The CricViz Analyst (@cricvizanalyst) November 27, 2020

Allen's left-arm orthodox spin-bowling is also impressive against RHBs, maintaining a miserly economy rate.

The IPL is certainly better than the CPL quality-wise, and Allen might not find it easy in India. But he can be mighty useful against a few of the other teams, at least.

PBKS has two games at Chepauk where Allen could come in very handy. Also, depending on the pitches on other venues, especially in Ahemdabad, Allen might get a few games at IPL 2021.